Chaos Chronicles: Kinship
by Ulkira
Summary: In a medieval world, there exists a kingdom: the great Kingdom of Segaco. In this Kingdom, there is a beloved ruler named King Sonic. This king shares a special connection with a lowly blacksmith. Together, what secrets will these two unearth from their own past, and their world's past? And would these secrets have been better left undiscovered? So begin the Chaos Chronicles.
1. King

**Author's Note: Alright, new story, new idea. Before I start, let me first say that this story is NOT a SonicxShadow story. There will be absolutely no such instances in this story. **

**Moving on, this is set in a fictional world, in a medieval time period. Believe me when I say this: This story is going to be long. Really long. Longer than Great Power was, at the very least. **

**Before you actually start reading this, I have some things to point out about this story; just simple points you should keep in mind while reading.**

**1) The character's ages shall differ in this story as compared to their Canon ones. There will be mentions here and there as to how old each character is, so keep an eye out for them. But as a starter, nearly all of the cast is fully-grown, meaning none of them are teenagers or pre-teens. So, if you only read stories where the characters are kids, sorry.**

**2) All of these "Animal People" have proper body proportions. So, no larger heads as compared to torsos. They're all realistically-proportioned. Also, their sizes are the size of a human their age; ergo, no being three-feet-tall at fifteen years of age.**

**3) Finally, all the characters wear clothes, regardless of gender or species. It's an alternate universe, I can make them do whatever I want.**

**Anyway, enough of this crap, let's get on with the actual story.**

**Disclaimer: Sonic the Hedgehog is the sole property of Sega. I do not claim any ownership.**

* * *

**King**

_**Year: 1532 P.W.**_

The Kingdom of Segaco is one of the largest and most prosperous nations in the world. Its ruler, the great King Sunlock, was revered as a just ruler and loved by all his subjects. The King ruled his nation, not through force or with an iron fist, but with a compassionate heart and a loving disposition towards his people. Even the enemies of the nation unanimously agreed that, thanks to King Sunlock's just reign, Segaco was one of the greatest countries in the world. Ironic, really, considering that in the past, Segaco was one of the most dangerous threats to a peaceful world; an image that, fortunately, had slowly been mended by the last few kings into one of a respected and lauded state. Such was the Kingdom of Segaco.

However, tragedy always strikes at the heart of joy. The adored King Sunlock, having ruled over his people for nearly three decades, was suddenly diagnosed with a terminal disease; a disease which, sadly, took his life. His wife, the illustrious Queen Sonia, had already met her end during childbirth, leaving the state in the hands of Sunlock's only son: the twenty-four-year-old Crown Prince Sonic. A handsome hedgehog adored by his people just as much as his father and mother had been, the now-orphaned prince was soon granted the title of King, and Ruler, of Segaco.

* * *

_**Date: 14**__**th**__** May**_

The vast, high-ceilinged room, its walls draped with decorative curtains and tapestries, and with its large golden doors located on one side of the rectangular room opposite the large, majestic golden throne, was empty save for the two lone figures.

One of them, a blue hedgehog dressed in a bright blue tunic and white trousers, with a royal blue cloak lined with yellow embroideries draped over his shoulders, sat thoughtfully on the throne. The elaborate, golden crown on his head glinted brightly from the radiant sunlight falling into the room through the tall windows.

The other figure, short and chubby, was garbed in a wine-red, hooded robe, his arms folded in front of his chest and hands tucked within the sleeves.

As the robed figure approached the elegantly-dressed blue hedgehog, the latter turned serious eyes of a jade green color to peer at the figure's face. King Sonic (for that was the name of the crowned hedgehog) took in the concerned, soft face of an elderly male hedgehog, his slate gray fur turning white at the corners of his backward-swept, short-cropped quills due to old age. The robed hedgehog raised a pair of affectionate blue eyes up at the King, his wrinkled face hinting at an age somewhere between sixty and seventy.

"My Lord," the hedgehog spoke softly to the King, "what troubles your mind? You should rejoice. Your father has at last been laid to rest in peace, and you are now the new King of Segaco."

The blue hedgehog's eyes wavered slightly in emotion. "Such an occurrence is not enough to rid me of the grief in my heart, Counselor," King Sonic stated glumly. "My father has just died, and it has greatly wounded me. Even now, I wish that he was still alive. If someone had to die, I would much rather it had been I, rather than my father, who was being laid down in that grave."

The Counselor gazed sympathetically at the emotional king. "No parent should have to bury their own child, Sire," the elderly hedgehog stated affectionately. "Death is a natural event in life, one that we must all face one day. It is only natural that the parent die before the offspring; the parent's duty is to raise their children to live among society, and the children's duty is to continue their family's legacy."

For a moment, King Sonic looked down from the Counselor and thoughtfully at the ground. He slowly murmured in a soft voice, "Children, huh?" He then looked back up at the advisor curiously.

"Counselor," he began suddenly, "how long have you served under my father and this family?"

The gray hedgehog looked at his King in surprise. "Nearly twenty-two years, my King," he replied unhesitatingly, though he did sound perplexed.

The King nodded his head.

"Yes, and during that time, you have not only been a loyal and wise advisor to my father, but a great friend." Green eyes looked up to meet blue ones. "You were his closest friend, Counselor, and I am honored now to have you as my personal advisor."

The Counselor fidgeted in embarrassment, not really sure how to respond to Sonic's kind words. He replied with a demure smile.

"My duty is to serve you and your family, Your Highness," he replied humbly, bowing his head.

The King blinked slowly. "Yes… Family…" He looked at The Counselor with the same curiosity as earlier. "Counselor, to express my gratitude for being such a great friend to both myself and Father, I wish to share some important information with you; information my father conveyed to me prior to his death."

This time, it was The Counselor who blinked at the other hedgehog. "Your father?" he asked in curiosity.

The blue hedgehog nodded his crowned head and leaned back in his throne, his eyes narrowed and his eyebrows scrunched up in thought. "Yes, my father. As you know, I was the last one to see our departed King before his death; the last person he requested an audience with before falling into a never-ending slumber." He looked at The Counselor meaningfully. "My father called me to tell me something very important, or rather to _give _me something very important."

The Counselor did not reply, patiently and politely waiting for his King to continue.

"It was an envelope," Sonic continued slowly. "An envelope with, according to my father, a key and a note sealed within it. Father told me that, after he died, he wanted me to open the envelope and read the note inside. The note would give me instructions on how to find a secret chest that Father had hidden somewhere in the castle. This chest, he said, could be unlocked using the key in the envelope."

King Sonic took a deep breath as if steadying his nerves, and it was understandable why, taking the content of his next sentence into consideration. "After Father's - Father's funeral, I opened the envelope and followed the directions given in the note to the chest. I opened it with the key, just as Father had instructed, and inside I found a letter addressed to me, written by Father himself."

"And what did the contents of this letter speak of?" the older hedgehog asked interestedly.

Sonic looked pointedly at the gray hedgehog. "It spoke of my father's son," he replied neutrally.

The Counselor blinked confusedly. "You mean, you, Sire?" he questioned.

"No," Sonic answered shortly, though not insolently or harshly. "It did not speak of me. It spoke of my brother. My _twin_ brother."

The wizened hedgehog dubbed "The Counselor" started in amazement. "A twin?" he repeated in astonishment. "Incredible! I was not aware that you had a sibling, Sire. I had always been under the impression that you were an only child!"

The cerulean hedgehog nodded his head in agreement. "As had I; as does everyone else - everyone, that is, aside from my father." Sonic glanced down at the marbled floor gloomily. "Father explained in the letter how, right after my mother died from giving childbirth, my twin was separated from us; kidnapped by someone. He then went on to explain how, ever since Mother's death due to childbirth and the separation of our family, Father had done his utmost to locate my brother. But alas, his time had run out before he could accomplish this task. On his death bed, Father had asked me - no, _begged _me - to fulfill one last wish of his: that I would find my missing brother, and bring him back to his rightful home."

He looked up determinately at The Counselor. "And that is exactly what I intend to do," he stated confidently.

The slate gray hedgehog smiled kindly at the King. Sonic had inherited many personality traits from father, determination and a heart of gold being the most prominent of them. He was as kind and caring as his deceased father (perhaps even more), and thus a fit ruler of this Kingdom. The Counselor felt more honored and grateful to be serving someone like King Sonic, than the King did for having him as an advisor.

"And I shall aid you in completing this task, Your Majesty," the old hedgehog confirmed loyally with a bow. "I will do everything in my power to help you find your brother."

King Sonic smiled appreciatively at his advisor.

"Thank you, Counselor," he remarked gratefully. "You and I shall honor my father's final wish, his final request."

* * *

**Author's Note: Before anyone asks:**

**1) No, Queen Sonia is not the same Sonia from Sonic Underground. I've never watched that show (nor do I ever plan on watching it), but I found that name to be quite fitting a name for Sonic's mother.**

**2) King Sunlock and Queen Sonia are both Original Characters, as is The Counselor. The first two are dead, and the third one is pretty much insignificant as compared to the Canon characters; so, if you hate stories with OCs in them, then don't worry: these three won't have that big a role to play. Not as big as the other characters, anyway.**

**Anyway, that's the end of my babbling; you can head on to the next chapter.**


	2. Smith

**Author's Note: These chapters are only short because they're the introductory chapters. I promise they'll be getting longer further on in the story. **

**Bit obvious who Sonic's brother will be, isn't it?**

**Disclaimer: Sonic the Hedgehog is the sole property of Sega. I do not claim any ownership.**

* * *

**S****mith**

_**Date: 14**__**th**__** May**_

"Hey, what'cha reading, there?" teased a heavily nasal and scratchy voice. A green-feathered hand plunged forward and pulled the book out of the younger one's hand. The bright green hawk, dressed in a black, long-sleeved tunic with a maroon leathered, sleeveless vest on top, and a pair of maroon trousers tucked inside black leather boots, raised the book until it was level with his blue eyes. A smirk formed on his banana yellow beak as he gazed at the cover in amused disbelief.

"Shakesparrow?" he read incredulously, raising an eyebrow in surprise at the other figure. "Who the hell is this "Shakesparrow" guy? He sounds like a total wuss! Hah!"

He laughed a screeching laugh down at the much shorter, and slighter, yellow fox. The fox cub wore the same outfit as the hawk, though obviously much smaller. This little fox trembled slightly in fear as he looked up at the much taller, and older, hawk through worried azure eyes. The fox's two bushy tails waved nervously as he made a grab for the book.

"Give that back, Jet!" the fox cried anxiously, extending a small hand forwards. Jet's smirk widened and he lifted the book higher and out of the fox's reach. He laughed as the boy jumped frantically, trying to snatch it out of the bird's hand.

"That's it! Jump for it, little fox! Jump!" he chuckled loudly, waving it teasingly above the twin-tailed fox's head. "Keep at it! Come on!" He suddenly leered at the fox, and with a careless toss, threw the volume over his shoulder and onto the dirt ground.

"Now fetch, boy!" he teased, laughing unkindly. The fox ignored him and made for his discarded book, but was rudely tripped to the ground Jet extended his leg in his path. As the fox came crashing onto the dirt, the hawk cackled loudly once more and walked around to stand in front of the fox cub.

"Look at you! What good do you think _reading_ will do for you?" he sneered, bending down and flicking a finger against the dusty fox's head. "How will reading help a _freak_ like you get on in life?"

With another laugh, Jet straightened up and unceremoniously pressed a booted foot over the fox's book. Said fox whimpered slightly at this action, but said nothing otherwise. Jet grinned down at his lack of response.

"What's wrong, Freak? Didn't all that reading help you learn how to make a comeback?" He snorted in contempt. "Why you think someone like you needs to waste his time reading this crap is beyond me! You're a metal smith, just like the rest of us! Fairytales aren't any use to us!"

The yellow fox did not answer, simply looking up at the hawk through faintly annoyed and disappointed eyes. Jet growled at the sight.

"Don't you look at me like that, you Freak!" he hissed, taking a step closer, and raising his hand as he prepared to hit the defenseless fox.

Only to have someone grab him roughly by the arm and pull him back.

"What the -?" Jet looked over his shoulder, and his eyes narrowed in distaste.

A black hedgehog stood behind the green hawk, a much taller hedgehog with red highlights on the upper edges of the six quills at the back of his head. Just like Jet and the fox cub, this hedgehog wore the same black tunic with the maroon vest on top, and the maroon trousers with the black boots.

The taller hedgehog released his hold on the hawk's arm, his face devoid of emotion as he watched Jet through stern, ruby eyes. The hawk growled angrily and rubbed his wrist where the hedgehog had grabbed it.

"Shadow," he hissed by way of greeting, eyeing the black hedgehog disgustedly.

"Really, Jet; are you still picking on people who can't fight back?" Shadow asked mockingly, though his face still maintained a stoic expression. "I figured someone as stupid as you would have grown bored of this by now."

Jet's eyes flashed in anger. "I'll show you stupid!" he snarled, lunging at Shadow with a ready fist aimed at the black face.

"Indeed," was Shadow's unfazed reply as he easily sidestepped the hawk. Jet stumbled past Shadow and whipped around to glare at the hedgehog, raising his fists in the air as if preparing for a confrontation.

"You wanna fight, Hedgehog?" he challenged aggressively. Shadow's wooden face broke into an amused smirk.

"Please, Jet. We both know that if I confronted you, it wouldn't be called a "fight"," he remarked airily. "It would be called "unfair"."

He waved a disinterested hand at Jet. "Now flutter away, little birdie. Go sing a song or something."

Jet trembled indignantly. "I'm a hawk, not a canary!" he spat vehemently. "I don't sing!"

"With that annoying voice? Thank God," Shadow responded humorously. Jet growled at Shadow's quip, but did not lash out in reply; instead he turned around and stomped away, muttering something about how "Shadow was lucky he wasn't in the fighting mood right now".

Shaking his head at the departing bird, Shadow turned around to face the fox, who had crawled over to his book and was now dusting the dirt of its leather-bound cover. The fox seemed relieved to find that, aside from looking a little battered, the book was otherwise unharmed.

"New arrival from the bookstore, Tails?" Shadow asked amiably, squatting down beside the fox to examine the book. The two-tailed fox's name was actually "Miles Prower", not "Tails" (a derogatory nickname that others had granted him to mock his "mutation"); however, the ten-year-old boy had long accepted this name as part of his identity, wearing it proudly like a badge. As he told his friends, he preferred it to his actual name; something about how he felt his real name had an inside joke to it.

Tails nodded his head energetically at Shadow.

"Yeah! I just got it from there today!" he remarked excitedly. "It's got a great collection of stories written by Shakesparrow! His best works!"

"Huh," was all Shadow said in reply, taking the book gently from Tails' hand and flipping it open to examine the Contents Page. He nodded down appreciatively at the titles of the various tales.

"Sounds interesting," he stated sincerely, handing back the volume to the fox. "Mind letting me borrow it once you're done?" he asked politely, rising to his feet.

"Oh, sure, of course!" Tails replied happily as he too rose to his feet. "Oh, and, thanks for the help earlier, Shadow!"

And with a grateful smile, the two-tailed fox skipped off to resume his reading.

The faint grin on his face vanishing, Shadow turned in the opposite direction and began making his way across the large expanse of grass around him. He had been walking for only two minutes when someone suddenly called his name, causing him to turn around to face the voice's owner.

A tall, fat human with a round head and a pair of dark blue sunglasses was striding up to the hedgehog. His well-tailored, crimson tailcoat was stretched tightly over his bloated belly, the yellow buttons appearing ready to pop off at any moment from the pressure. His matching pair of pure cotton trousers reached to his ankles, above the heavily-polished, shiny black shoes he wore. In one hand, he held a metal, copper-brown cane with a white jewel on top. The man's head was covered in a top hat, perhaps to hide the fact that his scalp was completely hairless. Though, to compensate for this, he boasted the most ostentatious pair of moustaches Shadow had ever seen.

The man's face was twisted in a malicious leer as he approached Shadow. The black hedgehog waited silently as he stepped closer, his eyes rising to look up at the man's face. After all, Shadow may have been a tall individual, but the man before him boasted a frame larger than his. Funny, considering the man did not seem like the one to excel in anything "physical".

"Ah, Shadow, there you are!" the bloated man remarked in apparent delight, though the nature of his grin implied otherwise.

"Sir Robotnik," Shadow murmured in respect, watching the man with uncaring eyes. The man named Sir Robotnik clapped his white-gloved hands together jovially.

"I just ran into Jet earlier," he informed. "And he told me how he'd seen you fighting again!"

Shadow's merely blinked unaffectedly at the man's statement, taking in the fact that he still sounded condescending. "That so? And who was I fighting this time?" Shadow played along.

Sir Robotnik smiled deviously. "Oh, I don't really remember the details," he stated, waving his hand aside as if these details he mentioned were insignificant. "All I _do _remember is Jet telling me you got into a squabble with the others. And you know how I don't like it when my subordinates fight amongst each other."

Shadow did not answer, merely waiting for the man to continue.

Sir Robotnik's smile intensified and he wagged a finger reprovingly at Shadow. "I'll let you off with a warning this time, Shadow. But remember! The next time you cause trouble, it'll be a week of solitary confinement for you!"

And with a hearty chuckle, the man strolled away from Shadow. The ebony hedgehog merely rolled his eyes irritably and continued his way.

Sir Robotnik: a venerated man renowned world-wide for his creative mind and works, particularly when it came to inventions. He was the sole owner and founder of "_Sir Robotnik's Metalworks_": a highly-respected industry that crafted a number of revolutionary inventions and accessories for the public; everything ranging from weapons to household items.

Initially, the firm had been small, only making items which its ingenious owner came up with. Eventually though, once Sir Robotnik had demonstrated how effective his inventions were and how brilliant he was, his popularity had grown. His little business quickly grew into one of the most successful companies in the world; so much so, that the man received a Knighthood from King Sunlock. His fame had grown to such an extent, that he had decided to branch out, and was now also involved in making upgraded and more effective versions of weapons and everyday items.

This new fame not only brought Sir Robotnik extreme wealth and a high social standing (he was akin to nobility now), but the need to hire more workers. Therefore, he had built a large, circular complex just outside the capital city of Segaco, close to the Great Palace where the Royal Family of Segaco resided. Within this complex, he had over a hundred craftsmen working for him, all earning a satisfactory salary, and all living "on campus". Living quarters had been facilitated for the workers, along with other basic necessities like bathrooms, cafeterias, recreational rooms, and the like. Living within the complex was not arduous; neither was it like living in a prison. In fact, employees were often allowed to leave the compound and visit the nearby town of Geneshire for recreational and business purposes.

Of course, while their pay was good, as well as their living conditions, Sir Robotnik's concern for his employees was more business-like than anything else. He did not hesitate to fire anyone who he deemed a hindrance to his business, nor did he care much about the well-being of his workers. He had supplied them with suitable conditions to live, and if they somehow became unable to work for him, he would most likely have them replaced without a second thought.

That said, though, Sir Robotnik was no fool. The majority of his workers were chosen on the basis of talent; not qualification or rank. If an employee showed outstanding skill with metal, then it was very likely that Sir Robotnik would spare a second or third thought for his well-being. And since he personally ensured that there were no "bad pieces of meat" among his stock, one would be hard put to find a useless worker in his company. He may have been a selfish man, but he was not, technically speaking, a horrible boss.

"Tch, that Eggman," Shadow snorted irritably as he approached his "barrack". "He knows perfectly well that Jet was lying to him. But he'll look for any excuse to chew me out for something."

"Eggman". That was the name most, if not all, of Sir Robotnik's employees referred to him as; an obvious shot at his "egg-shaped" body. The Knighted genius, however, seemed unaware of this nickname his workers had bestowed upon him. Either that, or he purposely feigned ignorance.

Shadow unlocked the door to his barrack and stepped into a warm, cozy room. A pair of armchairs sat with their backs to an open window opposite him in front of a simple fireplace. In the center of the room was a round, wooden table, and beside the front door was a counter (complete with a sink basin) and a line of cabinets. To Shadow's right were two single bedrooms, one his, and the other belonging to his roommates.

And who was his roommate, you might ask? No, it wasn't Jet, silly. That would be too unrealistic, even for a fictional tale set in an imaginary medieval time period. No, it wasn't Jet. It was Tails. Much more realistic.

Anyway, moving on:

Shadow stepped into his quarter and closed the door behind him, slipping off the maroon vest he wore. As per protocol, all of Eggman's employees were required to wear the very outfit Shadow, Tails, and Jet could be seen wearing. It was their work uniform, and anyone seen without it was punished for this show of "insubordination".

The ebony hedgehog sat down on his bed, gazing silently around his room, thinking. He had been working at _Sir Robotnik's Metalworks_ for nearly nine years now, and he could confidently say that he was quite the skilled blacksmith. Yes, everyone agreed with that; even Eggman, despite his obvious dislike towards Shadow, thought highly of the hedgehog's skills. Shadow earned a handsome pay, lived in a comfortable "house", and though he was reclusive and withdrawn, was in the company of good people. It was a good life; better than he could ask for.

And he was perfectly content with it.

* * *

**Author's Note: There you go. ****Bear in mind, I won't be uploading two chapters at once from here on out. The only reason I did so right now was because (as I stated above) these are the introductory chapters, which are supposed to give you the basic idea of the story. **

**Which leads me to my next point, which is: what do you think of it so far? Interesting or not? I ask you to let me know, because this story is going to be quite a tough one to write, due to what I've got planned for it. So, let me know if you like it, and whether or not I'm wasting my time writing this.**


	3. Resolve

**Author's Note: ****Thank you all for the reviews. I'm glad to see that some people have liked _Kinship_ so far.** As such, here's the next chapter; and a little earlier than I planned, too.

**Disclaimer: Sonic the Hedgehog is the sole property of Sega. I do not claim any ownership.**

* * *

**Resolve**

_**Date: 19**__**th**__** May**_

Sonic leaned back in his throne with a sigh, his mind lost as he recalled the note left by his father for the tenth time that day. The thought had taken hold of him, seemed to be possessing him. Really, the only thing he could think about right now was finding his brother. He had set to work already to locate him, but was positive it would be no easy feat finding him. For all King Sonic knew, his brother may not even be alive now. And if he was, who knew where he was at the moment? He could be in another country as far as he was aware. But he wasn't going to give up. No. He had plenty of leads, plenty of signs to look out for. It was only a matter of time before he found the other hedgehog, his brother.

_I will find you, Brother_, thought Sonic resolutely, the hand on which his chin rested clenching in determination. _I'll find you, and bring you back where you belong: to the Palace, to your family; just as Father wished._

A sudden interruption in the form of a uniformed sentry entering the Throne Room awoke Sonic from his musings. The King started slightly and looked up at the bronze wolf.

"Announcing the arrival of The Princess of Soleanna: Princess Amy," the wolf declared, stepping aside to let the newcomer enter the room.

A slightly short female hedgehog with bright pink fur stepped into the room, dressed in a decorative, silvery-white dress with dark blue embroideries that fitted her slim form snuggly. Her short, chin-length quills were held in place by the silver, jewel-encrusted tiara on her head, which served the double-purpose of acting as a hair band. Her kind, green eyes looked across the room at the cerulean hedgehog, and she smiled pleasantly. This simple action alone enhanced the plain yet remarkable beauty her face held, as she stepped closer to the King's Throne.

However, the Princess was not alone. As always, she was accompanied by her "caretaker": Lady Rouge. A snow-white bat with stern, azure eyes and a voluptuous figure, Lady Rouge often drew gazes from others, not only because of her startling looks, but because of her choice of clothing. She was often dressed rather unorthodoxly as compared to women of this era. At the moment, a pair of loose, copper-brown trousers held up by a large leather belt covered her legs, with the ends of these trousers tucked into her tall black boots. For a top, she wore a tucked-in white tunic under a sleeveless, brown leather tailcoat with a white fur color. And finally, her hands were covered in black gloves.

Needless to say, her style of dressing was more befitting a man than a woman, but it was not worn with any feminist ideals in mind; instead, it was chosen with practicality in mind. Being both the Princess' lady-in-waiting and personal guard, Lady Rouge therefore elected to wear clothing that would allow her to protect her mistress easily and efficiently, at all times.

Despite the convention of ladies never taking part or associating themselves with any form of violence, with Lady Rouge it was a unique case. An attentive, cautious woman with a steady demeanor, the caretaker had more skill in combat than most knights Sonic had seen. Despite never having trained to be a knight or soldier, Lady Rouge had learned enough about fighting to easily become one; if she wanted to. There were few people King Sonic knew who could match her battle prowess. Indeed, she could certainly take on one of King Sonic's finer warriors and come out on top. After all, there was a reason why she was often called "Madame Mayhem" jokingly (and to an extent, reverently) by many people.

The sentry left the room with a bow and closed the double doors behind him as he exited. King Sonic then smiled down at the two ladies.

"Your Majesty." Princess Amy curtseyed respectfully, with Lady Rouge mimicking her.

"Welcome, Princess Amy; Lady Rouge," King Sonic greeted back politely. As he gave his greeting, he rose to his feet and descended down to the two females from the three steps that led up to his throne. He took Amy's bare hand in his and placed a gentle kiss on it.

"I'm pleased to see that you've arrived safely," he continued warmly, straightening up once more and leading the Princess up the steps, with Rouge following. He sat down on his throne, and Amy took the one beside him, the one usually occupied by the Queen of Segaco. However, considering the current circumstances, it was not strange for the Princess to be taking this seat.

The Kingdom of Soleanna: the name of the land beyond Segaco, where the wise and just King Quill ruled. A kingdom renowned for the warm, pleasant climate that endured throughout the year; even the summers, which one would expect to be unbearable due to an increase in temperature, were highly enjoyable. In fact, the summer months were the most revered ones in said land, for it was then that the people of Soleanna had their famous "Festival of Fire"; a festivity that hundreds from all over the nation, and even from other countries, came to participate in.

Soleanna and Segaco were known for having a powerful and trustworthy alliance, one that had blossomed from a fifty-year-long friendship; only recently had the friendship turned into an unshakable partnership. King Quill had been an old, dear friend of the King Sunlock and vice versa, a friendship that had only been broken by the former King of Segaco's death. However, before the King's demise, both nations' rulers had come to an agreement on a way of uniting the two kingdoms and strengthening the alliance between the two. It was such that the current King of Segaco, Sonic, was engaged to the daughter of King Quill, Princess Amy.

This engagement had been set up a year ago, and was working out beneficially for both parties. The King of Soleanna thought of Sonic as his son already, and Sonic himself respected and adored the old hedgehog greatly as well. Princess Amy, three years younger than her husband-to-be, was all too excited to be betrothed to someone "as great a man as King Sonic" (as she and her father repeatedly said). Had it not been for King Sunlock falling ill a mere two months after the start of this engagement, Sonic and Amy would have been married already. However, in light of the situation, King Quill had suggested the wedding be postponed until Sunlock had recovered.

When it was clear that King Sunlock would not be recovering, the dying King put forth a request: that when he should die, Princess Amy would take his place along with Prince Sonic as the new rulers of Segaco. As per the departed King's wish, the two hedgehogs were to be wed soon, and the Kingdom of Segaco would then have a new queen.

"Thank you, Your Highness," Amy replied to Sonic's earlier remark about her and Rouge's safe arrival. "I've been looking forward to returning to Segaco. It's almost like a second home to me now. I always enjoy my visits here."

Sonic smiled warmly. "As do I, my dear," he agreed. "You'll be staying here for a while, will you not?"

The Princess nodded. "Yes, Father has granted me permission to spend the next two months here in your palace," she informed delightedly. "He says it is important that I see and learn to love the place that shall be my home soon. Isn't that right, Lady Rouge?"

Amy looked up amiably at her caretaker, who was standing silently at attention behind the former's seat.

"Yes," Rouge replied unemotionally, though a faint smile spread across her mouth as she looked down at the pink hedgehog. It was clear that, despite her hardened demeanor and cold persona, Rouge genuinely cared for the Princess. Indeed, there relationship was noted by close ones to be akin to a sisterly bond, a connection made easier no doubt due to the fact that Rouge was only a year older than Amy.

"So, how are things back in Soleanna?" Sonic asked the Princess. The pink hedgehog then entered into a short narrative concerning the currently successful political and economic standings of Soleanna amongst the other nations. King Sonic listened with apparent attentiveness, but in truth, he was not really listening. Not because he disliked the female hedgehog or because he didn't care enough about her presence to even listen to her (he was nowhere near that ill-mannered); but because his mind had wandered, once again, to the task his father had assigned him: finding his brother.

He wondered, once again, where he was right now.

* * *

_**Date: 25**__**th**__** May**_

A single, rectangular shaft of sunlight broke through the darkness and fell on the motionless visage of the ebony hedgehog. Shadow slowly opened his eyes and looked up coldly at the smirking face of Eggman, which was looking back down at him through the "window".

"Well, Shadow, it's been seven days," Eggman announced in a clearly insincere attempt at concern. He closed the flap on the window, and a second later there was the sound of a key turning in a lock; a door in front of Shadow was opened gently to send a (seemingly) blinding wave of light into the hedgehog's face. The black hedgehog blinked and shielded his eyes from the glare, a result from having been shrouded in darkness for many days.

"Time for you to come out and get back to work," Eggman continued mockingly, as he stepped back to let the black hedgehog pass. Shadow slowly rose to his feet, taking care not to hit his head on the low doorway as he exited the structure. He slid an uninterested glance over his shoulder at the metal-and-wood, rectangular box that he had just been locked inside. Only one window and door were present on its smooth walls, the ones having just been used by Eggman. The "box" was no more than four feet wide on its base and five feet tall, nowhere near big enough for a grown person to stand up straight in. And he, Shadow, had just been inside that dark, stuffy box for seven days straight.

The Solitary Confinement Cell: just where Eggman had promised to send Shadow should he misbehave again; and it seemed Shadow had done exactly that, and only a few days after Eggman's "warning".

A week ago in the cafeteria, while Shadow had been standing in line to get his lunch, Jet had "accidently" pushed Shadow's head into the latter's bowl of stew. Amid rowdy laughter from the hawk, Shadow had wordlessly responded by "accidently" upturning Jet's entire tray of food into the hawk's face. Following this action, Shadow had grabbed the stunned Jet by the scruff of his neck and calmly dumped him into a trash can at the end of the counter. And right on cue, Eggman had appeared behind Shadow and begun going on about how Shadow was "disturbing the peace" and "causing a ruckus" and other things the hedgehog didn't bother hearing. Eventually, Eggman had grabbed Shadow by the arm and hauled him away to the Solitary Confinement Cell.

Much to the pleasure of a smirking, food-covered Jet, who - as the kids say - "went scot-free".

As usual, Shadow did not bother arguing or trying to stop his employer from performing this unfair act. Neither did any of his colleagues, for everyone was already used to Eggman's penchant for punishing Shadow over the simplest of things. This had escalated to such a level that Shadow no longer bothered trying to avoid this result. In many cases like the aforementioned, when Shadow could have characteristically ignored Jet, he instead opted to retaliate. Why, even if Shadow ignored Jet, the hawk would continue to aggravate him until either Shadow actually hit him, or gave Jet the opportunity to fake an injury. There had been one such moment, when Shadow had merely waved his hand at Jet's face to tell him to "get lost", when Jet suddenly collapsed to the floor, groaning as if Shadow had just punched him in stomach. And even then, Eggman had blamed Shadow and punished him for "assaulting a fellow employee".

It was anyone's guess why Eggman was always regarding Shadow as the guilty party. Common knowledge was that Eggman seemed to harbor a noticeable disdain for the ebony hedgehog, despite Shadow being one of his best craftsmen. Most likely it had to do with the fact that, unlike the majority of Eggman's subordinates, Shadow was not that intimidated by his boss. It was not as if Shadow spoke or acted rudely in front of Eggman; in fact, his mannerism was always calm and polite in front of him. Even so, Eggman knew that he couldn't twist Shadow around his fingers like his other workers. Therefore, he would resort to petty acts such as favoring others over Shadow, or shifting any well-deserved praise away from the hedgehog; childish, trivial actions which were only performed for the purpose of aggravating Shadow, and perhaps make him (for once) act out line. Unfortunately, Eggman never got the pleasure of either result.

One would wonder why Shadow did not speak up against Eggman's inhospitable treatment toward him, but really, he did not care all that much about it. Both Shadow and Eggman knew that the latter would never sack the former and risk harming the business of _Sir Robotnik's Metalworks_, even if it was a little change. That was how obsessed Eggman was with succeeding in his business: he was willing to ignore "insubordination" to such a degree, so long as his company flourished.

"Off you go, Shadow," Eggman remarked off-handedly, with an equally off-handed wave of his, well, hand. "I hope you've learned your lesson now."

"Yes, sir," Shadow mumbled automatically before striding away from the grinning man. Shadow stuffed his hands into his pockets and directed his feet to his barrack. After having spent so many days locked in a room he could barely stand in, let alone move in, Shadow's whole body felt cramped and sore; not to mention he was starving. Sure, he had been offered meals during his "imprisonment", but what kind of punishment would solitary confinement be if Shadow got three square meals a day while locked inside his cell? Oh no. "Ruffians" like Shadow only got a slice of cold bread and a glass of water to keep them alive, one in the morning and one in the night. After all, how else was Eggman going to ensure no one crossed a line, if he wasn't strict in dealing with disobedience?

Stomach growling loudly and head spinning from hunger, Shadow finally made it to his cabin and stepped inside to find Tails seated on a chair, reading as he always did during his free time. At the sound of the door opening, however, the fox looked up from his volume and breathed a sigh of relief. He discarded the book and hurried over to his roommate.

"Shadow! You're back!" Tails exclaimed happily, before taking notice of the weakened state Shadow was in. The young fox helped the ebony hedgehog into a seat before getting him a glass of water.

"Here, drink this," Tails offered sympathetically. As Shadow took the glass and downed the transparent liquid, Tails moved to one of the cabinets and fumbled inside for a few seconds, before pulling out a tin of biscuits. He placed the jar before Shadow and sat down opposite the hedgehog. With a word of thanks, Shadow took a biscuit and bit down on it.

Tails watched Shadow with concerned eyes. The black hedgehog was more than twice his age, yet he was, in a sense, his closest friend; to Tails, Shadow was an older brother of sorts. Whether Shadow thought of the fox in the same way was unclear. Although, it was quite obvious that the black hedgehog was rather protective of the younger male; as evidenced by the fact that he would often step in to help Tails when he was being teased or bullied. In fact, it had been that way ever since the two had first met.

Currently, Tails was a mere twelve years of age, having been living at _Sir Robotnik's Metalworks_ for nearly two years now. His tale was a rather sad one. Both of Tails' parents were dead, his mother having passed away two years ago, his father dying a year later. However, husband and wife did not die together. Tails' father had been - plain and simple - a scoundrel. After impregnating Tails' mother, the father had left her to raise the child on her own. He abandoned her while she was pregnant, breaking all ties and contacts with her. Where he went exactly, she did not know. Not for many years.

An only child with deceased parents and no money, the heart-broken mother had no choice but to raise her son by herself; that is, until her frail body succumbed to sickness, and she passed away. The poor Tails, with no one to take care of him, was eventually brought to his dispassionate father, Ivan Prower. As it happened, the father was in the employment of Sir Robotnik at the time (and was, incidentally, Shadow's roommate as well).

The heartless brute did not seem to care that his "wife" was dead, or that his son was now homeless and was in need of his care. He flat-out refused to accept responsibility for his son, and told him "to get the hell out of my face". And it seemed that no one could convince him otherwise. Surprisingly, even Eggman had made an attempt to persuade Ivan to look after his son, but the old fox remained adamant in his refusal.

It was then that Shadow had stepped in. Like many others, he was disgusted by the older fox's treatment towards his own flesh and blood. But unlike the others, Shadow was willing to do something about. He requested to Eggman that Tails be placed under his care, as an apprentice metal smith. Ivan was outraged to hear this, but Eggman (always looking for an opportunity to "spice up" the relationship between his employees for his own sick amusement), agreed to Shadow's request. In fact, he went so far as to tell Ivan that, if he did not like the arrangement, then he could pack up his bags and leave.

"Either way, your son will be staying here with us," Eggman had announced with a malicious grin.

Yet it seemed that the stubborn Ivan would not stand for this. No doubt unable to admit the fact that he had been beaten, the fox had indeed packed up his belongings and left the company. Tails was then left in Shadow's charge, living with the hedgehog in the same cabin. Over time, Tails began to regard Shadow as a brother, and though he remained ambiguous about it, Shadow certainly felt the same as well.

It was a few months later that news reached their ears about Ivan's death; he had apparently gotten into a drunken state that had resulted in a violent tussle with another group of intoxicated men. An accidental slip of a hand, and a knife had been lodged into Ivan's heart, ending his life. And thus, Tails was an orphaned child, the closest thing he had to a family now being the black hedgehog.

"Why does Eggman keep locking you up in that cell, Shadow?" Tails asked miserably, breaking the silence and pulling Shadow out of his thoughts. "He keeps blaming you and punishing you for little things, and half of them aren't even your fault! Why does he keep doing that?"

Shadow smirked slightly as he munched on another biscuit. "Beats me," he mumbled through a mouthful of baked batter. "If any of us knew what went on in that bald head of his, we'd all be the ones running this company by now. Over a hundred workers who are physically stronger than him, _and _whohave metalworking tools that make effective weapons… and yet none of us can actually stand up against him. He's got a different kind of power, that Eggman."

Shadow looked thoughtfully over at Tails, who still seemed puzzled despite Shadow's words.

Tails spread his arms helplessly. "Well, why do you keep putting up with this treatment?" he asked anxiously. "Why don't you just stand up to him and tell him to back off? You told me to do that as well, whenever someone is picking on me! If Eggman's so cruel, then you shouldn't just -!"

"He's not cruel," Shadow suddenly interjected, surprising the yellow fox. Tails blinked as Shadow gazed thoughtfully at the floor. "Just unique."

None of Shadow's peers, not even Eggman, knew that the one of the reasons why Shadow put up with Eggman's antics was because of gratitude. Shadow was perhaps the only person who had seen Eggman display a "good" heart; twice, in fact. One was, of course, when he had agreed to let Tails stay at his complex, and the other…

Shadow suddenly put down his food and looked up from the floor at the primitive pendulum clock on the wall: one of the many innovative ideas from Sir Robotnik's head.

"We'd better get going; it's almost time for my shift to start," Shadow remarked, closing the tin of biscuits and placing them back in their cupboard. He turned and smirked at the still-worried fox. "If I'm tardy, I'll probably get another week in solitary confinement."

Tails smiled weakly, aware that Shadow statement was both a joke and an accurate observation.

"Yeah, probably," Tails replied, getting to his feet and following Shadow out the door. Tails, of course, did not actually do any actual crafting; only waiting by on Shadow to hand him any tools or materials he needed for his work. After all, Tails was still just a child; not even Eggman expected a small boy like him to be swinging a hammer the size of his head.

* * *

_**Date: 26**__**th**__** May**_

The slate gray hedgehog, clad in his brick red robe, hurried into the large garden at the back of the palace and over to the blue hedgehog peering absent-mindedly at a small pond of fish. Beside the cerulean hedgehog stood the pink form of Princess Amy and her caretaker, Rouge. The Princess seemed unaware that her fiancé's mind was currently elsewhere; and even if she did, she did not make any sign of knowing. Therefore, King Sonic continued to gaze blankly at the depths of the pond without interruption, thinking.

However, his musing was broken by the hastened arrival of the aforementioned gray hedgehog. King Sonic turned an inquiring gaze to his counselor, noting the suppressed enthusiasm on his aged face.

"Yes?" Sonic asked in sudden interest, advancing an eager step towards the older hedgehog. The latter moved closer to whisper something in Sonic's ear. A few feet away, Amy and Rouge watched the two male hedgehogs with curiosity.

"My Lord," The Counselor was whispering excitedly. "I believe - _I believe we've found him_."

A sudden look of surprise spread across Sonic's face, before a grin spread across his muzzle. "Ready my carriage," he ordered, with equal excitement tainting his words. As the advisor nodded his head and scampered off, Sonic turned to his fiancée and her guard.

"Did something happen, Your Highness?" Princess Amy asked interestedly as he faced her, tilting her head sideways at the king. Sonic smiled apologetically.

"I'm sorry, my dear, but I must take my leave right now. There is an urgent matter that I must attend to." He bowed in apology. "I will return as soon as I can, though."

And with that, he hurried off eagerly after The Counselor, leaving Amy and Rouge looking at each other quizzically.

* * *

**Author's Note: ****Don't ask me why I chose Soleanna as Amy's homeland; I'm not too sure myself.**

_**To ballancup: **_**Well, I have no knowledge about medieval folklore, so I can't argue with your statement. I'm sure that there might be some similar aspects in this story as compared to other ones based on a medieval time period. But I can guarantee you this: this story won't turn out in whatever way you think it will. If it does, then I'll commend you for being the best guesser on Earth.**

_**To Sierra Zanimalini14**__**: **_**Yes, Shadow is Sonic's brother. Everyone keeps saying that they look alike after all (which they don't, by the way).**


	4. Meeting

**Disclaimer: Sonic the Hedgehog is the sole property of Sega. I do not claim any ownership.**

* * *

**Meeting**

_**Date: 26**__**th**__** May**_

"You are sure it is him, Counselor?" Sonic asked for the third time, his foot on the highest step of his personal carriage. His emerald green eyes were looking down anxiously at the robed hedgehog. Said older hedgehog nodded his head in confirmation.

"Yes, Your Highness," he replied confidently. "I have made sure this time; I thoroughly checked up on the validity of our informant's words, and I believe he is the one. Though, it is up to you to confirm that for sure."

King Sonic nodded. "Yes, you're right. Well then, I had best be off."

Stepping into the carriage, he closed the door and sat down. A second later he felt the lurch in his body which indicated that the coach was now in motion. King Sonic sat in his seat in silence, impatiently tapping his fingers against his folded arms and occasionally glancing out the window. The Great Palace of Segaco was a few miles up a path from the town of Geneshire, their current destination. It would take the carriage maybe thirty minutes to get to the village. After that it would take them slightly over an hour to traverse through the village and to the other side of its boundary, to its outskirts, and along the lone path to the complex of _Sir Robotnik's Metalworks_.

_All this time, he's been right here under our noses? _Sonic thought incredulously, looking out the window at the approaching Geneshire. _It's a wonder how Father never found him… Though, if he works for Sir Robotnik, then I guess it's understandable that he never caught anyone's eye before. Metal smiths aren't, after all, very famous._

It was a little over an hour and a half later that the coach came to slow halt, and a few seconds after that the door to the carriage was opened by a tall, acid-green platypus in a black suit and matching top hat. The driver of the coach stepped back as Sonic emerged from the carriage, murmuring respectfully as he did so:

"We're here, Your Majesty."

"Thank you, Patrick," Sonic answered as he stepped onto the dirt and glanced around. Before him stood the vast, mind-bogglingly large compound which housed the main branch of Sir Robotnik's metalworking industry. The King raised his eyebrows in admiration of the spectacle.

Even for Sonic, who had seen many an extravagant and enormous structure in his life, this sight was breathtaking. True, all he could mostly see was the thirty-foot tall, concrete wall that encircled the complex, but the fact that the boundary stretched kilometers beyond either corner of his vision was stunning enough. Even above the wall, one could see the numerous columns of smoke rising up from the equally numerous smithies that were within the complex; and even with the wall towering above him, the King could still see the iconic, black tower rising up from the center of the facility, its pointed top piercing through the sky as the symbol of the company literally grinned down at them.

"Ah, Your Majesty! I was expecting you!" an oily voice called out to Sonic suddenly, pulling the hedgehog out of his thoughts. Sonic turned away from his admiration of the facility and to the approaching man; Sir Robotnik was dressed in his formal crimson wear as always, wearing a grin that just screamed "suck-up".

"I received word from the Palace that you had some business to attend here?" the rich man remarked excitedly, clasping his hands together and peering down from his large height at his King. "And what exactly can I do for you, as you have graced my industry with your presence?"

Sonic did not react to Sir Robotnik's clearly obvious attempt at flattery, instead cutting straight to the chase.

"Actually, I'm not here to see you, Sir Robotnik," he informed in a business-like tone. "I'm actually here to meet one of your employees."

Sir Robotnik blinked in surprise. "One of my employees?" he repeated. King Sonic nodded his head.

"Yes. I believe his name is Shadow."

A literal minute of silence followed the King's words, during which Sir Robotnik stared at Sonic with a dumbfounded expression, his mouth hanging open slightly. Finally, the wealthy man shook his head and brought himself back to his senses.

"Oh, Shadow! Yes, one of my employees is certainly named that." Sir Robotnik looked at Sonic curiously. "If I may ask, why exactly do you wish to meet him, Sire? Has he done something wrong?" His tone was suddenly worried, but the barely concealed look of mischief on his face was hard to miss.

Sonic merely smiled in an ambiguous manner. "I would prefer if you didn't question my actions, Sir Robotnik," he stated in a voice that sounded affable, but was clearly commanding. "Now, if you would kindly bring Mr. Shadow to me…"

"Oh, o-of course, Your Highness," Sir Robotnik stammered uneasily, hurrying away from the King and through the gates of his complex. Once he was out of sight of Sonic, he stomped over to Shadow's cabin with a snarl on his face, wondering as he did so: _What the hell has he done now?_

Sir Robotnik banged open the door to Shadow's barrack rather rudely, stepping inside without invite and glaring around the interior for the ebony hedgehog. However, the only one present in the cabin at the moment was Tails, who almost fell out of his chair at Eggman's abrupt arrival.

"Where's Shadow?" Eggman barked irritably at the juvenile fox. Tails blinked in wonder.

"Shadow? He's gone to -."

"Looking for me, Sir?" a smooth, deep voice spoke up from behind Eggman. The fat man started in surprise and turned around to find Shadow standing right behind him, holding in his hands a freshly-laundered stack of his uniform.

Eggman pointed an annoyed finger in the direction he had just come from, at the entrance gates. "Get yourself to the front gates, Shadow," he muttered in an aggravated air. "The King has come to see you."

In spite of himself, Shadow actually looked stunned at this piece of news.

"The King?" he repeated in disbelief, nearly dropping the garments he held to the ground. Tails also gaped at the back of Eggman's head; he had almost fallen out of his chair at Eggman's words, just like before. Eggman nodded darkly and grabbed the clothes from Shadow's arm, roughly tossing them over his shoulder into the cabin.

"Yes, the King," he confirmed irritably, grabbing hold of Shadow by the shoulder and dragging him towards the gates. Shadow shot an inquiring glance at Tails before he was pulled away, but the fox's shrug of ignorance conveyed to him that the child was just as clueless as he was.

"What does the King want from _me_?" Shadow asked Eggman, breaking free of his employer's hold and falling into step beside him. Eggman shrugged.

"I don't know; he wouldn't say. You haven't done anything to upset the Royal Family, have you? I can't have one of my workers getting into trouble with the King. It'll ruin my company's reputation!"

"Well, I can assure you, Sir, that I haven't done anything to anger the King," Shadow responded to Eggman's "considerate" statement.

Eggman snorted, unconvinced.

"We'll see, Shadow."

It was a minute later that the two exited the imposing metal gates of the complex and approached the waiting Royal. King Sonic turned his admiring gaze from the facility once again and at the newly-arrived duo.

Shadow, despite his usual composed mindset, could not help but feel a little nervous as he surveyed the King; it was the first time he had actually laid eyes on His Majesty from such a close distance. Usually, Shadow made it a point not to attend any "formal" events where nobility was present; assuming, of course, that a lowly blacksmith such as he was even invited in the first place. Why, Shadow had not even bothered to attend the coronation of King Sonic prior to King Sunlock's death; such was how little he cared for the "government" that ran his home country.

As Shadow was busy noting how ridiculous the King looked in his breeches and that extravagant woolen cloak draped over his shoulders, Sonic himself was also giving the black hedgehog a look-over. Shadow was, as was required of him, dressed in the uniform assigned to him by Eggman. But Sonic was looking past Shadow's clothes, trying to understand the hedgehog behind all that leather. He was trying to see inside his mind, as if seeking confirmation of the truth through that method. And the longer Sonic looked, the more convinced he felt that this, this hedgehog, was indeed the one.

"This is the employee you wished to see, Sire," Eggman piqued up respectfully, indicating Shadow. "He is one of my blacksmiths: Shadow."

He nudged the ebony hedgehog in the ribs. "Greet the King, Shadow," he hissed quietly at the hedgehog.

Shadow frowned for a millisecond before making a rather stiff and uncaring bow towards the blue hedgehog. To most, Shadow's dispassionate attitude towards royalty such as this would be considered criminal and deserving of extreme punishment. Indeed, Eggman looked just about ready to pull a hammer out of thin air (like a certain pink hedgehog we all know) and smack it against Shadow's head. Who knew what kind of trouble Eggman might get into, if one of his subordinates acted so insolently to the King of all people? They might even remove his Knighthood!

Fortunately though, the King did not seem offended or outraged by Shadow's lack of enthusiasm. He merely nodded his head in acknowledgement of Shadow's greeting, still eyeing him curiously. It was after an uncomfortable minute of silence when Eggman finally cleared his throat loudly, and spoke up:

"Well, I'll just leave you to your business, Your Highness." With that, Eggman backed away from the two and towards the gates, hissing vehemently to Shadow as he did so: "Don't do anything stupid, Hedgehog!"

Having delivered this silent warning, Eggman disappeared behind the large metal gates; these gates then closed before the two hedgehogs a moment later. Now left alone with only the King and his driver, Shadow turned an uneasy face to the Royal, wondering what he could want with him. He voiced this mental query out loud, phrasing it in as polite and respectable a manner as he could manage.

King Sonic smiled warmly at the inquiry. "Why don't we take a little stroll whilst we talk, Mr. Shadow?" he suggested in a surprising courteous manner. His smile widening at Shadow's obvious surprise, Sonic turned around to face his coach's driver.

"Wait here for me, Patrick. I won't be long," he informed with a nod. The green mammal blinked uncertainly.

"Are you sure, Your Majesty?" he began slowly, rising to his feet and glancing at Shadow. "It may not be sa-."

Sonic raised a hand to forestall Patrick's statement. "I can take care of myself, Patrick. You need not worry about me; I am the King of Segaco, after all." He flashed a reassuringly smile at his driver, who nodded in submission. Having settled this issue, Sonic turned back to Shadow.

"Come," he commanded in an amiably tone, placing a hand gently on Shadow's shoulder leading the darker hedgehog around the wall circling the complex. Shadow obediently followed the King, still pondering as to why someone as important as he, would come meet someone as unimportant as Shadow.

_Sir Robotnik's Metalworks_, while on the outskirts of Geneshire, was nonetheless adjacent to a number of woodlands, and even a large river (this river being where the facility got all its water from). It was to this river that the two hedgehogs ventured towards, coming to a stop near a small pond of sorts, where the channel of water collected via a small waterfall before continuing its ever-lasting course.

Here, Sonic smiled at the peaceful scenery, before taking a seat on a fallen log. After a moment's hesitation, Shadow did the same, sitting down beside the King, though far enough to express his still-present discomfort. King Sonic, however, did not seem in any hurry to relieve Shadow of his confusion. Instead, he was busy admiring the greenery around him. Despite having stated that they would talk while they walked, neither of the two hedgehogs had actually said a word during their little trek: Shadow, due to not knowing what to say, and Sonic, seemingly from being too occupied with his surroundings.

However, there was only so long Shadow could stand this.

"You said you had something to discuss with me?" Shadow asked impatiently, before adding a "Sire?" as an afterthought. He may have been uneasy and uncomfortable around the King, but his irritation and impatience were starting to get the better of him.

King Sonic finally turned his attention to Shadow, smiling pleasantly at the black hedgehog. Shadow waited expectantly for the blue hedgehog to answer his question, but he didn't. Instead, the cerulean hedgehog replied with a query of his own.

"Mr. Shadow, if I may ask, could you tell me a bit about your father?" he asked randomly, peering at Shadow curiously. The blacksmith gaped at the Royal in confusion, not having expected a question like this.

"My father?" he repeated in puzzlement, blinking slowly.

King Sonic nodded.

"Why do you wish to know about my father?" Shadow asked suspiciously in a rather insolent tone, for a moment forgetting to whom he was speaking. When he realized though, he apologized hastily for his tone, to which King Sonic waved a hand uncaringly.

"It's alright. Just please answer my question. Don't make me order you to." He smiled pleasantly at the last comment, signifying the humor in his voice as he said that. Rather than smile back, Shadow merely nodded in submission before slipping a thoughtful expression on his face.

"Well, firstly, he wasn't really my father," Shadow began slowly and carefully, looking away from Sonic and down at the grass. "That much he told me from the beginning. His name was Skiltstin. He found me as a baby on his doorstep twenty-four years ago, left there by someone. There was no note, nothing on me. He was not a married man, having only a few friends (or "acquaintances", I suppose I should call them), and none of them really interacted with him that much.

Anyway, as I said, there was no note or anything, so Skiltstin took me into the house to look after me. He kept me there, waiting for someone to come and claim me, but no one did. Even his "friends" were surprised by this occurrence. You see, my father wasn't exactly well-thought of among his peers. It wasn't because he was manipulative or deceitful, or had a bad personality; no. It was more to do with the fact that he was rather weak in both body and mind. Apparently, he wasn't one to handle responsibility well, so it was quite a shock to others when they found out that he was looking after a baby. Many did not think him capable of the task. In fact, the day he found me, one of his friends was over at his house, and told him point-blankly to hand me over to someone else; someone who could give me my "best chance" at life."

"But he didn't do that, did he?" Sonic interjected thoughtfully. "Skiltstin decided to take on the challenge presented to him, and kept you?"

Shadow looked slowly over at the cerulean King, and nodded. "Yes. He told me that he had always wanted a son; apparently, none of his loved ones were alive anymore. He had no parents, no siblings, and no romantic others to accompany him. He had been alone, all by himself, until God had blessed him with my arrival. At least, that was what he told me," Shadow added rather embarrassedly.

"What happened after that?" the King pressed, disregarding Shadow's momentary display of awkwardness.

"Well, life was peaceful, I guess. Father and I were not really well-off; he was just an ordinary spinner, though not really a very good one, mind. Still, he made enough for us to get on; we never had a big, fancy house or any great luxuries, but I was - _both _of us were - happy with our life. Until, that is, my fifteenth year…."

Sonic leaned forward with interest. "When?" he pressed eagerly.

Shadow narrowed his eyes, unaware that he was being rather cliché and over-dramatic at the moment. "Father had gotten into a spot of trouble with one of his clients. Apparently, the buyer was not satisfied with the quality of his products, even though my father was always completely honest in those matters. Skiltstin never fibbed, always making sure to inform his customers that his works were not the best they could find. It hurt our business, yes, but Father was adamant that we not swindle anyone just for our sakes.

Anyway, as I was saying, one of our clients was dissatisfied with our materials. I - I was away from the house at that time, having been asked by Father to go to town and fetch some fresh straw for his spinning. When I returned home, I found that our house had been burned to the ground. Everything inside had been reduced to ash: the walls, the flooring, the furniture; even my father. I - I found his charred form right beside the remnants of his spinning wheel."

Sonic lowered his head sympathetically.

"I am sorry," he stated quietly. "I'm sorry for making you recount this tale to me. It must bring back painful memories; memories that you probably wish to forget."

Shadow shook his head in reply, looking far from depressed or despondent. "No, nothing like that. I'm still grieved by my loss, but I've accepted it and moved on. After all -." He allowed the faintest of smiles to appear on his unmoving features. "- Father once told me that death was a natural stage in life: the final stage, which we must all come to experience."

King Sonic looked up at Shadow, and smiled in amusement. "Funny. One of my closest friends once said something similar to me," he mused thoughtfully. "Your father certainly had a bit of wisdom in him."

He suddenly shook his head, as if preventing himself from falling into deep thought, and returned his attention to Shadow.

"Well, Mr. Shadow, since you have been kind enough to answer my question, I suppose it's only fair if I tell you why I requested your company." He looked at the blacksmith intently, his demeanor suddenly taking on a serious quality.

"Tell me, what do you know about my family, Mr. Shadow? About my own father, specifically."

Shadow blinked in confusion. "Other than the fact that he was a great man and ruler, not much: I never saw much of him, or anyone else of a noble status, to be honest." He smiled grimly. "I am, after all, just a simple blacksmith."

Sonic continued watching the ebony hedgehog intently.

"I shall tell you why I requested your company," he repeated.

And thus, he began.


	5. Race

**Disclaimer: Sonic the Hedgehog is the sole property of Sega. I do not claim any ownership.**

* * *

**Race**

_**Date: 26**__**th**__** May**_

Shadow's expression of polite attentiveness slowly turned into one of confused curiosity; a result of Sonic telling him about King Sunlock's illness and his final days. Sonic repeated the last conversation he had had with his father, regarding the King's order to his son, slowly and deliberately, as if he wanted Shadow to hear every word carefully and understand their meaning properly. And finally, Sonic's narration reached the part where he revealed to Shadow, just as he had done to The Counselor, the contents of Sunlock's final letter. And just like The Counselor, Shadow was also surprised by the news that Sonic had a brother; though, he managed to limit his display of surprise to a simple cocking of his eyebrows.

"After reading the note, I had no choice but to fulfill my father's dying wish," Sonic was saying. "I've made it my goal to complete the quest he set me. And I think, now, I have come to the end of this quest."

Shadow's eyes narrowed the briefest inch as he listened to the cerulean hedgehog.

_He's not implying…_, thought Shadow slowly. Sonic was now looking at Shadow meaningfully, jade green eyes locked with deep red ones.

"Shadow, I am convinced that you are my broth-."

"Stop right there," Shadow interrupted, rising to his feet suddenly to forestall the hedgehog's declaration. He looked down at the Royal with a blank face. Was this person serious? Did he really think that Shadow, _Shadow_ of all people, was his brother? His _twin_ brother, no less? It was impossible. He, Shadow, was just an ordinary blacksmith. He was not royalty; he was what royalty spat upon when there weren't any peasants around to experience that "honor".

"I don't mean to be rude, Your Highness, but I believe you've made some sort of mistake." Shadow shook his head slowly. "I am no prince, I am a blacksmith. It's true, my past and origin are shrouded in mystery, but that does not mean that I'm this long-lost sibling of yours."

King Sonic did not seem put-off by Shadow's clear skepticism. He rose to his feet with a genial grin. "By that logic, it also doesn't mean that you _aren't_," he added profoundly.

Shadow paused, considering. The King had a point, of course. But still…

"I am no prince," Shadow repeated, more firmly this time.

"At the moment, no, no you're not," Sonic stated calmly. "But, you will be; once you return to your rightful home, at The Great Palace with me."

Shadow narrowed his eyes irritably. "You sound very convinced of this. _Sire_. Tell me, if King Sunlock had been searching for me all these years, how is it that he never found me, yet you managed to do so in only a few days?"

The smile on Sonic's face faltered slightly at Shadow's keen observation. He lowered his gaze slightly. "Sometimes, what we search for most in life is right under our noses. And we do not even realize it," he answered. His tone sounded of one repeating something they had heard before, and recalled from memory.

Shadow huffed skeptically.

"Such profound words, _Your Majesty_," he sneered, though the quality of his speech seemed to have gone undetected by Sonic.

But Shadow did not really care for an actual answer for his earlier question from Sonic. He could certainly believe that King Sunlock had not found him all these years (if indeed he had been searching for him, as Sonic claimed). Shadow had not always lived at _Sir Robotnik's Metalworks_, as he had already elaborated. In fact, he and his adopted father had lived a great distance away from Geneshire and The Great Palace, not thinking it right for "common folk" such as they to mingle with the "sophisticated folk" that lived in such areas. Why, Shadow had only come to Geneshire a few years ago, when he had first been offered the job to be one of Eggman's metal smiths; and well, once you began working for Eggman, you did not really interact with anyone other than your colleagues. Even the king of a nation would not be able to find anyone from amongst Eggman's workers, unless he already knew exactly whom he was searching for.

However, Shadow did not voice these thoughts out loud to Sonic. His skepticism was getting the better of him, making him pull up the imaginary wall he had built over the years; a wall that served to keep others away from his mind and inner thoughts. He was stubborn person, after all; and this stubbornness was what made him so reluctant to accept the King's words.

"I am convinced, Shadow," Sonic restated in a tone as firm as Shadow's, but much less aggressive. "I know that you are the one I've been seeking."

Shadow smirked faintly in mild amusement. "I, on the other hand, have yet to be convinced," he told the King. Without waiting for a reply, the ebony hedgehog extended a hand out to the King for him to shake. "I am honored that you decided to visit me, My King. I wish you luck in finding your sibling; however, I would like you to understand that I am not him."

The cerulean hedgehog eyed the ebony one through curious eyes. A half-smile then stretched onto Sonic's face as he looked down at Shadow's hand. He sighed and clasped the leather-gloved hand in his own cotton one, and shook it gently.

"Well, I suppose I was being a bit too forward with you, Shadow. I apologize." He released Shadow's hand, and seemed to consider the situation. "I suppose it would be best if I took my leave now."

However, he did move an inch, instead remaining lost in apparent thought. Green eyes suddenly looked up at Shadow curiously, and he spoke once more.

"Although, since we're by ourselves, why don't you and I have a little fun, Shadow?" he suggested suddenly.

Shadow blinked uncertainly. "Come again?" he asked, not sure how to react to this. What did he mean by "a little fun"? Shadow fidgeted uncertainly. He certainly hoped Sonic didn't mean what he thought he meant. Shadow didn't "swing that way".

Sonic smiled affably, not having noticed Shadow's discomfort. "How about a race?" he offered. He jerked a thumb to the large, circular wall that served as the boundary of Eggman's complex. "A foot race, to be precise: one lap around the facility, starting from the front gates. What do you say?"

Shadow stared at the King, looking like he was wondering about his sanity. Why in the world was he suggesting a race of all things, at a time such as this? It was completely random, and irrelevant to everything that had just transpired between the two hedgehogs right now. Furthermore, proposing a race around the complex was rather ambitious for the King, even if it was only one lap; not because Shadow felt he could "wipe the floor" with His Majesty, but because, well, the entire facility was as large as a village itself. Yes, high speed was something everyone was capable of in this world, but very few could actually run that far or for that long.

Feeling he ought to point this out to the "ignorant" Royal, Shadow raised an eyebrow at Sonic before speaking slowly. "A lap around the complex? You are aware, aren't you, that the perimeter is as large as the perimeter of Geneshire? Perhaps even more. I don't think you would be able to make that trip, Your Highness."

Sonic smirked in confidence, a smug look appearing on his visage. "Oh, you need not worry about me, Shadow. Of my many talents, a high stamina is one of them. I can easily run around this complex." He peered at Shadow thoughtfully, grinning slyly. "And looking at you, I would say it's the same for you. In fact, I would hazard a guess that you're quite the runner, Shadow."

The blacksmith lowered his crossed arms and looked back at the King in puzzlement. He was right; Shadow _was _"quite the runner". In fact, it wouldn't be egotistical of Shadow to say that he was probably the fastest person on foot amongst Eggman's employees. Enough of his colleagues had already seen his high speed several times; whether it was because someone had challenged him to a race (as the King was right now), or whether it was due to Shadow hurrying to his smithy. He wasn't exactly blindingly fast; but he was fast enough for his sprints to stand out.

Nonetheless, no one outside the complex knew about Shadow's "gift", partly because Sir Robotnik's employees did not interact much with those of the "outside world". The few times they were allowed outside, the employees' contracts bound them to secrecy and ambiguity, even for matters that didn't have anything to do with their jobs. Of course, the latter rule was often ignored by many (even Shadow), so it would be likely that someone had mentioned his speed in passing to an outsider. Although, this was quite unlikely, seeing as how very few people were friendly enough with Shadow, or could tolerate his icy attitude, to want to talk to or about him at all. Usually they would just be insulting him behind his back when it was "safer" (not that Shadow would do anything to them if he caught them backbiting). Yet, King Sonic seemed to be well-aware of Shadow's talent, or at least seemed to have guessed.

"Y-yes," Shadow agreed dubiously, averting his narrowed eyes from the King and frowning down at the ground in discomfort. It was a habit of his, unfortunately; being the center of attention, having praise sent his way, or anything which would draw other's attention to him, made Shadow feel uncomfortable. "I've been told that I'm quite fast on my feet."

Sonic's smirk widened. "Well then, I suppose a race is certainly in order! Shall we get going?"

Looking up from the grass, Shadow's own mouth twisted into a smirk. "Sorry, but I think I'll pass," he stated casually, as if he were speaking to a friend rather than the King of Segaco himself. "I have a feeling that beating the King of Segaco in anyway would mean a life sentence in prison."

"Oh, don't worry, I'm a good sport," Sonic remarked, laughing gently at the Shadow's joke. "I wouldn't have you sent to prison for _that_… At least, not for life."

He grinned slyly at Shadow, before replacing the grin with a pensive expression. Sonic stroked his chin thoughtfully with a finger, eyes gleaming mysteriously as they eyed Shadow.

"I have an idea," he stated pleasantly. "How about we make this more interesting? Say, give each other an incentive?"

Sonic pointed at Shadow. "If you win, you get to come back to the Palace with me. However, if I win -," he pointed to himself, "- then I shall leave you be, and allow you to return to your life."

Shadow blinked, confusion overtaking him all over again. "So in other words, if I win, you get what you want, and if you win, I get what you want?" he clarified slowly in surprise. What on Earth?

Sonic smiled and nodded.

"Indeed. Rather interesting, isn't it?"

And with a laugh at Shadow's bemused expression, he began strolling back to the gates where his carriage was parked. In spite of himself, Shadow found his feet automatically following the King back to their starting point. It wasn't like he _was _going to race or anything. No, there was no reason for him to. Yet he was still following him…

Patrick looked up from under his top hat as the two hedgehogs approached him. He leaped to his feet from the driver's seat, in which he had been lounging, and smoothed out his ruffled clothes.

"Ready to go, Your Highness?" he asked Sonic politely. The cerulean shook his head with a jovial smile.

"Not just yet, Patrick. Shadow and I are going to have a little race first."

Patrick blinked his black eyes in surprise. "A race? With you, Sire?" he asked in stunned disbelief.

Sonic nodded. "Yes. In fact, I would like you to be our judge, Patrick, and tell us who wins the race." He then turned to face Shadow and stepped a few paces his left, marking a line in the dirt with his shoe.

"This is the starting and finishing point, Shadow," Sonic informed. He unclasped the woolen cloak he wore and handed it to Patrick. "First one around the boundary and back here is the winner."

Shadow eyed the King curiously as the latter stretched a little, loosening his muscles in a warm-up procedure. After a few seconds, the blacksmith finally spoke up.

"You do realize, don't you, that I could just lose on purpose, right?" he asked the Royal. "I could just let you win."

Sonic straightened up and shrugged off-handedly. "The thought occurred to me, yes," he admitted casually. He smirked at Shadow inexplicably, though. "The question is, though: _will _you let me win?"

Crimson eyes blinked in surprise as the cerulean hedgehog laughed and got into position. Shifting uncertainly, Shadow did the same, crouching down on the dirt as he got "on his mark".

"On three, alright?" Patrick announced, raising a hand into the air. Sonic nodded his head, while Shadow kept his eyes locked ahead of him, face set and body tensed.

"One!"

_I'll just let him win_, Shadow decided confidently.

"Two!"

_There's no reason for me to take part in this little charade_, he continued. _I'll simply let him get ahead of me and -._

"Three!"

With a cloud of dust, Shadow kicked off from the ground and shot forwards.

Inexplicably, he seemed to have completely forgotten about the decision he had just made. He had literally left Sonic behind in the dust as he bolted away from the blue form, his concentration locked on the path ahead of him, and at the wall slowly curling away to his left. A familiar feeling of excitement was welling up inside the black hedgehog's gut as he ran. The adrenaline pumping in body, the wind pushing against his face, it all felt comforting to him. This, this was one of the few things which Shadow really enjoyed doing. This was -.

"Not bad!" a voice applauded suddenly from Shadow's side. Scarlet eyes swiveled to the right in surprise to gawk at the smirking form of Sonic, who was easily keeping up with Shadow. Shadow almost stumbled in shock. He was going what, maybe fifteen, twenty miles per hour? A speed that was rapid even for Shadow; and though it was one that would soon tire him, he had enough endurance to hold out before he made it to the end of the track. A claim that most would be unable to make confidently.

And yet, here was Sonic, easily keeping up with him, and not even breaking a sweat at that!

"You _are _fast, I'll give you that," Sonic noted in admiration. And right in front of Shadow's eyes, he turned in mid-run (or "mid-jog", it seemed more like), and began running backwards, his arms folded across his chest as he smirked over at the darker hedgehog. The fact that he could not see where he was going did not seem to worry the King; he appeared to be completely confident in himself as he accurately adjusted his course around the complex, all the while maintaining his pace with Shadow's.

_How is he -? _Shadow began in wonder, staring dumbfounded at the complacent hedgehog. Sonic's smirk intensified.

"You're fast," he repeated in acknowledgment. "But…." He waved a finger at Shadow arrogantly. "… you're not fast enough!"

And with a glorified chuckle, he spun the right-way around and sprinted ahead of Shadow, vanishing behind the curving wall in seconds. The trail of uplifted dust from Sonic's motion blinded Shadow momentarily. The ebony hedgehog coughed and rubbed his stinging eyes. Peering through the cloud of dust angrily, he gritted his teeth and snarled. Without another thought, he tensed his body and quickened his pace, going as fast as he could after the blue hedgehog. However, even at his fastest, he was nowhere near quick enough to keep up with his opponent.

"You won't get away!" Shadow murmured resolutely. And with renewed determination, he attempted to run faster than he had ever before, urging every fiber of his being to grant him speed; to let him pass that _pesky_, _smug blue hedgehog_.

The world around him slowly began to become a faint blur, the surrounding trees and rocks seemingly to meld with the blue backdrop of the sky. Even the textured wall to his left looked smooth and hazy in his peripherals as he shot around it. A long trail of uplifted dust hung in the air behind him as his booted feet mercilessly padded the ground underneath. The rushing wind blasted into his face with greater force, stinging his eyes and pushing quills back in a streamlined shape; its roar grew louder in his flattened ears, as if a rabid beast was howling at his side. His breathing was quick and short now, and he could feel his fatigue slowly increasing. However, he paid no mind to all this. All he could think about right now was speed.

And soon enough, Shadow saw a blue dot in the distance; a blue dot that was quickly growing larger.

All thought of acknowledging defeat having long vanished from his mind, Shadow tensed every muscle in his body and willed himself to go faster. In a matter of seconds, he was a step behind Sonic, now travelling at a speed so blindingly fast that the backdrop around him was nothing more than an incomprehensible, blurry streak.

They were now past the half-way point, and it was at that moment that Sonic spotted Shadow right beside him. The cerulean hedgehog raised his eyebrows in sincere astonishment at this occurrence.

"Well, _this_ is a surprise!" Sonic observed delightedly. He leaned his body further forward and increased his speed, only to find to his further surprise (and pleasure) that Shadow also matched his acceleration to keep up with him. The black hedgehog was watching his blue opponent with steady eyes, his features as characteristically still as stone. The grin on Sonic's face widened.

"Heh! Looks like you really are a quick one, Shadow!" he laughed, turning his attention to the "track" ahead. Shadow allowed a faint smirk to stretch his lips before he too directed his gaze forward. Gritting his teeth, the black hedgehog continued his sprint beside the blue hedgehog.

Seventy-percent.

Eighty percent.

Ninety percent.

Less than a minute later, ninety-five percent of the course had been completed. Both hedgehogs were still neck and neck, one managing to pull ahead of the other for a millisecond before the other caught up. With just a few yards to go, they now had the finish line in their sights. They could see Patrick standing there patiently, waiting for their arrival. Sonic and Shadow shot each other a determined, stubborn glance before they made a final dash for the line…

… and crossed over it at the exact same time.

"Whoa!" Patrick cried, jumping out of the way as two blurs rushed past him like bullets.

Shadow stumbled to a stop and comically landed face-first on the dirt, not used to halting suddenly from such a rapid speed. Sonic, however, expertly skidded to rest beside Shadow, bending over to place his hands on his knees while he panted slightly. His grinning face turned to look over at Shadow, who was slowly rising to his feet and dusting himself off with a scowl. Emerald green eyes were twinkling triumphantly at the ebony hedgehog.

"Well done, Shadow! Well done!" Sonic applauded, actually clapping his hands at the darker hedgehog. "But, whatever happened to "letting me win"?"

He grinned teasingly at Shadow, who blinked, having finally remembered his initial plan of action. He turned uneasy eyes away from Sonic's amused ones and did not reply. The King smirked and turned to look over at Patrick.

"So, Patrick, which one of us won?" Sonic asked genially.

Patrick grinned weakly and laughed in embarrassment.

"Err, sorry, Your Majesty… I didn't see. The, uh, dust got in my eyes at the last second," he admitted apologetically. "But it looked like a tie to me!"

Shadow turned irritated eyes towards the platypus. A tie? _A tie_? Even after he'd just gone and made a fool of himself, it had been a tie?

_Wait a minute_, Shadow suddenly interrupted his own silent raging. He turned quizzical eyes to look at Sonic. The reality of what had just happened was finally coming to Shadow. He had just been able to keep up with Sonic, someone who could run far faster than Shadow had ever done, or seen anyone else do. He had been so fast, that Shadow would not have believed such a feat to be possible. And yet, he, Shadow, had been able to keep up with Sonic, even though he had never, not once in his life, ever gone that fast before - neither willingly, nor subconsciously. No, the speed he had demonstrated right now was completely unprecedented of him. He had been able to increase his speed, just like that and without a second thought, in a matter of seconds. It was as if he had always been naturally capable of obtaining such speeds.

But how was that even possible?

"A tie?" Sonic repeated in surprise, looking rather put-down; more so, in fact, than Shadow had been. He looked over at Shadow with glum, yet admiring eyes. "I have to admit, Shadow, I didn't think you would perform so excellently. I'm impressed."

Shadow said nothing in response, his perplexed look now replaced by his standard, impassive one.

Sonic suddenly snapped his fingers, as if having a sudden epiphany. "Oh dear, I've just realized!" he announced dejectedly. "We didn't decide what would happen if it was a draw, did we?"

Once more, Shadow said nothing in response, still staring silently at the King.

"Hmm," Sonic thought out loud, stroking his chin contemplatively. A moment later, he shook his head with a sigh and looked up at Shadow.

"Well, Shadow, it's clear to me that you do not wish to come to the Palace with me," he remarked in a rather sad tone. "Even as a king, I will not force you to come if you don't wish to. So… I will take my leave now."

With a nod, Sonic turned around and made to walk over to his carriage. However, he stopped immediately and turned around, stepping closer to Shadow. Reaching into a pocket, the cerulean hedgehog pulled out a small, indigo card and held it out to Shadow.

"If you change your mind, though, you're more than welcome to join me at the Palace anytime, Shadow," Sonic offered amiably with a smile. "Just show this to the guards, and they'll let to you in."

Shadow took the card wordlessly in his hand and glanced down at it, reading the handsome, curling handwriting that formed the words:

_By Order of King Sonic, Son of Sunlock, _

_I hereby grant permission to Mr. Shadow to enter The Great Palace in order to meet me._

Sonic's official signature followed this little note.

With a silent nod, Shadow pocketed the card and looked back up at the King, who seemed to be waiting for Shadow to say something. When the ebony hedgehog did not, Sonic merely shrugged and held out his hand for Shadow to shake.

"Well then, I'd best be off," Sonic observed lightly, whilst Shadow shook his hand stiffly. He titled his head at the black hedgehog as he backed away to his coach. "I hope we meet again in the future, Shadow! Perhaps we might be able to have another race, eh?"

With a friendly wave, he stepped into the coach and closed the door. Patrick tilted his top hat respectfully at Shadow before pulling at the reins. The two palomino horses at the front of the carriage neighed before starting forward at a gentle trot. As Shadow stood watching, the coach slowly picked up speed and made its way down to the path leading to Geneshire. It soon vanished behind the line of trees of the woods lying between Geneshire and the compound. Shadow narrowed his eyes, before spinning around and marching back inside the massive complex behind him.

He moved as quickly and covertly as he could, not wanting to be stopped by anyone and thus questioned. His mind was currently in turmoil as he thought hard, trying to understand, trying to comprehend. To his immense relief, he did not run into Eggman or anyone else as he drew near his cabin. Pushing the door open, Shadow registered briefly in the back of his mind that Tails was absent from the building. Glad that he would not have to explain anything just yet, Shadow sat down at the round table and pulled out the card Sonic had given him. He stared down at it, mouth stretched into a firm line of discontent, crimson eyes narrowed in thought. Finally, he sighed and lowered his head, clasping his hands against his temples in frustration.

_What the hell just happened? _he wondered desperately.


	6. Contemplation

**Disclaimer: Sonic the Hedgehog is the sole property of Sega. I do not claim any ownership.**

* * *

**Contemplation**

_**Date: 26**__**th**__** May**_

"His _brother_?" Tails repeated incredulously from across the wooden table, sky blue eyes staring at the dark hedgehog. "The King thinks you're his _brother_?"

Shadow nodded his head slowly, his eyes clouded over in thought. He had just finished recounting the King's surprise visit to Tails, ending it with the mouth-dropping information that King Sonic had revealed.

"Yes. Apparently, the previous King had left him some note explaining everything. Though, there was no mention of the brother being named "Shadow" as I am; mind you, my adopted father gave me this name, so it's understandable why King Sonic didn't know me that name." Shadow took a small sip of water from the glass in his hand. "Still, seems a little too random and sudden."

"I'll say!" Tails agreed, still astonished by this piece of information. "How can you two be brothers, let alone twins? For one thing, you barely look alike! I mean, you're black, and the King is blue!"

Shadow smiled faintly. "Yes, I noticed that as well. The only similarities are that we're both hedgehogs, and are the same age. Otherwise, there's nothing but disparity. But despite him not actually saying anything about it, I think the King knew that we weren't supposed to look alike. After all, if we are twins, we could still be non-identical twins."

"I suppose…" Tails scratched his chin thoughtfully. "But didn't he say _why _he was so sure you were his brother? I mean, there has to be a reason. How did he even find you in the first place? Someone must have told him about you. Didn't you ask?"

"Unfortunately, no. It slipped my mind, I'm afraid. Our little "race" was all I could think about."

"The race... Tell me more about it."

"Well…," Shadow began slowly, lowering his glass and setting it on the table. He locked his fingers together and propped his arms on top of the table, resting his lower lip on his intertwined fingers: a position he often adopted when he was contemplative.

"I originally planned to just lose on purpose, you see. It seemed the easiest way to get rid of him without being rude. But, I don't know… Something he said, about whether I would even _let _him win… I don't really understand it, but as soon as the race started, I immediately thought: _I've got to win_. And I tried to do just that: win.

Until I found out just how fast the King was himself, that is. I'm telling you, Tails - I have _never _seen anyone move that fast before. It was almost mind-boggling. And he wasn't even trying. I could tell that it was practically like walking for him, the speed he was going at. I was flabbergasted.

Anyway, that would have been the perfect chance for me to just give up back then. It was obvious that I wouldn't be able to keep up with him, but again… I just couldn't. I think I must have felt like my pride was at stake or something. I guess I didn't want to lose, even if it was to the King."

"That's new," Tails noted thoughtfully. "Usually you don't care about winning or losing."

Shadow nodded his head slightly. "But I know that I seldom let my pride or honor go challenged. Well, whatever the reason, I found myself yearning to beat that hedgehog. And before I knew it, I was speeding up, going faster than I've ever gone before. It was… amazing. I've never really felt anything like that before. The wind in my face like that, it was -."

Shadow blinked, managing to stop himself from falling into a daydream. Shaking his head slightly, he resumed his narrative.

"Before I knew it, I was neck and neck with the King; and soon, it was over. The race was finished, and it was a tie; a draw."

Tails smiled knowingly at Shadow. "You're actually disappointed in yourself, aren't you, Shadow?" he observed slyly. "You're annoyed that it was a draw."

Frowning, the hedgehog looked away from slightly from the fox. "Well, maybe," he mumbled in faint irritation.

_If I could keep up with him like that, than I surely could have _beaten _him as well, right? _he wondered. _Couldn't I?_

Choosing not to voice these thoughts out loud, Shadow decided to change the topic, sliding the card Sonic had given him across the table to Tails.

"He gave me that, saying I should use it in case I change my mind and decide to go to the Palace," Shadow explained. Tails picked up at the card and read the words on it. He looked up in faint worry at Shadow.

"So… _are _you going to go there?" he asked in a voice trembling with suppressed anxiety. "To the Palace? Are you going to - to leave this place?"

Shadow stared at the uneasy fox thoughtfully. "No. I'm not," he finally replied, smiling reassuringly. He reached a hand across the table and gently patted the small fox cub on the head. "I won't leave you here all by yourself, Tails."

Azure eyes brightened at these words. "Oh, okay," Tails replied in an attempt at casualness, but it was clear that he was relieved to hear this.

"Well, I think it's best if you get some sleep, Tails," Shadow suggested, glancing out the window at the darkened sky. "We've got work to do tomorrow."

Hours had passed since Shadow's meeting with the King; hours which had initially gone by in thought, and then explanation. Shadow had not spoken to or seen anyone other than Tails since the events of today. Even Eggman had not come round demanding to know why the King had asked for Shadow and what had happened between the two. Whether Eggman already knew - via characteristic eavesdropping - was completely unknown to Shadow; either way, his employer had yet to confront him regarding this strange occurrence.

"Alright, Shadow," Tails agreed obediently, getting to his feet and making his way to the bathroom to get ready for bed. Shadow remained in his seat, staring blankly at the empty glass in front of him, once more thinking. He reached forward and picked up the card Tails had deposited on the table, before getting to his feet and moving to the window. He gazed out into the black sky, a sky almost as dark as his fur, his brow scrunched thought.

Behind him, Shadow heard Tails exit the bathroom and make his way to his bedroom. Slipping the card back into his pocket, Shadow turned away from the window as Tails wished him goodnight. Relaying the same words back to the fox, Shadow made his way into the now vacant bathroom, and locked the door behind him.

He turned his gaze to the reflection of his face in the mirror above the sink, hands clasped on the white sink edges as he stared thoughtfully into the ruby eyes. Slowly, he extracted the card from his pocket and examined it once more.

* * *

_**Date: 26**__**th**__** May**_

The gray hedgehog, garbed in cotton of the same color, approached the oak doors tentatively. He bit his lip in uncertainty, before raising a fist and gently knocking on the door. After a few seconds of silence, a soft voice replied through the door:

"Enter."

The Counselor pushed open the door and stepped inside the large, majestic room that was the King's quarters. The furniture within was made of the finest quality of wood, the decoration pieces all crafted by noteworthy hands. The ruby-red curtains were drawn shut, blocking out the night sky beyond. Sitting on the foot of the magnificent, four-poster bed was the cerulean hedgehog. His hands were clasped together as if in silent prayer, his glazed eyes staring down unseeingly at the springy carpet underfoot.

"My Lord, dinner is ready…," the older hedgehog began slowly, peering worriedly at the King. "The Princess is awaiting you."

Slowly, the light returned to the emerald green eyes, and King Sonic finally looked up at his advisor. "Yes… I understand. I will be there shortly, Counselor," he answered in a soft voice, rising to his feet and making his way to one of the windows. He pulled back the curtains and looked up at the star-strewn sky and the crescent moon.

"Tell the Princess that she may start without me," Sonic stated without turning. "I will join her in a few minutes."

"Ye-yes, Your Highness." The Counselor made to leave, but stopped, looking back over his shoulder at the blue hedgehog. His eyes trembled in concern.

"Sire, perhaps it's too soon to lose all hope," he suddenly spoke up, advancing towards the king. "There's still a chance he could see the truth. We shouldn't give up yet. Even if you did not have any luck today -."

"No luck?" repeated Sonic, interrupting the elder hedgehog. He looked meaningfully at the robed advisor, the right side of his body bathed in moonlight. "I believe it's incorrect to think that, Counselor."

The gray hedgehog looked at the King in confusion.

* * *

_**Date: 27**__**th**__** May**_

It was six in the morning. The Sun had yet to rise properly, having only emerged partially over the horizon to cast a weak glow into the lightening sky. The majority of the workers at _Sir Robotnik's Metalworks _were still asleep, only a few staff members such as gardeners, cooks, and the like having risen at such an hour. The rest of the crew, the metal smiths, mechanics, and others, were still lost in their dreams. With working time officially beginning at eight, and their jobs being best described as "strenuous", rest was a comfort many sought. However, one metal smith was already out of bed, and was currently to be found knocking gently on the door to his employer's office.

"Come in," Eggman called from behind the wooden frame. The door was opened slowly and Shadow stepped into the room, already dressed in his uniform. Eggman looked up in faint surprise at the hedgehog, his quill stopping above the parchment he had been scribbling on.

"Shadow? Well, aren't you up early today!" Eggman noted curiously. He set the expensive quill in his hand inside the ink bottle by his elbow, and peered up questioningly at the blacksmith. "And what brings you to my office at this hour?"

"I have some business to attend to," Shadow began calmly, taking a step forward, with emotionless eyes watching the amused man, "in town."

Eggman raised an eyebrow once more. "Oh? In town?"

Shadow nodded his head shortly. "Yes. I've come to tell you that, unfortunately, I won't be able to do my morning shift today," he explained.

If anything, Eggman's expression of amusement intensified even further. Shadow wasn't _asking _if he could go down to town; he was _stating _it. What nerve did this hedgehog have, that he would dare speak to his employer in such a manner? You didn't _demand _something from Sir Ivo Robotnik - you _requested _it. He ought to punish Shadow for his insolence.

"Is that so? Very well then." Eggman picked up his eagle-feather quill and resumed his writing, as if he had never been interrupted. "I'll have Jet take your morning shift instead. You can take his afternoon one; right before your usual evening shift."

Shadow nodded obediently. "Thank you, Sir," he answered, stepping back to the door.

"Oh and Shadow," Eggman called out without looking up from his note, "don't take too long, understand?"

Without replying, Shadow closed the door behind him and left the smirking man to his work.

Outside, his eyes momentarily scanned the brightening sky above, before he made his way back to his cabin. The entire complex was as silent as Space; not even the chirping of awakening birds, or crickets, could be heard. Every cabin he passed by still had its lights switched off and its shutters closed. Everyone was still asleep, which suited Shadow just fine.

Reaching his own cabin, Shadow stealthily turned the door's handle and stepped inside the dark building. His eyes slid automatically to the door of Tails' bedroom, which he was satisfied to notice was still closed: Tails was clearly still asleep. Turning his gaze away from the door, Shadow moved to his own room and pushed the door open. He then froze when he saw that there was someone already there.

A pajama-clad Tails was sitting at Shadow's desk, his eyelids drooping every now and then from unsatisfied sleep. However, at the sound of Shadow entering, the fox started and glanced over at the hedgehig. His face relaxed in relief for the briefest second before a look of suspicion overcame his visage.

"Where are you going, Shadow?" Tails asked, rising to his feet and moving over to the taller hedgehog. Shadow turned a stoic expression away from the fox and moved to his nightstand, rummaging inside the drawers for a moment before pulling out his wallet. He silently pocketed it and made to exit the room, but the fox forestalled him by repeating his earlier question.

"Shadow, where are you going?" Tails pressed, now sounding worried.

"Down to the village," Shadow replied shortly after a tense pause. He did not turn around to look at the fox.

Sky blue eyes blinked at Shadow's answer. "You're - you're going to the Palace, aren't you?" Tails whispered miserably. "You're going to the King, right?"

Once again, Shadow was a while in replying. Though Tails could not see it, his forehead was wrinkled in deep thought.

"Yes," he finally replied, still not looking at the yellow animal. "I'm going up to The Palace, to meet the King."

"Oh," was all Tails had to say; his young face looked crestfallen, his ears flattening down in distress. "Is it because you -?"

"I need some questions answered," Shadow cut across. "That's why I'm going."

He finally turned soft eyes to the startled fox, smiling faintly in reassurance. "And I intend to come back."

This comment seemed to cheer up Tails considerably, though he still appeared worried. Nevertheless, he allowed a smile to stretch across his mouth as he nodded at his friend.

"Alright, Shadow."

"I won't be taking my first shift in the morning," Shadow informed casually. "I'll be taking Jet's afternoon one, so relax until then. Oh and, I'd appreciate it if you didn't tell anyone about where I've gone."

Tails blinked in confusion, but did not press for details. Instead, he nodded submissively. With a brief smile, Shadow exited the room and the cabin. After a moment, Tails hurried after him and stood in the doorway watching him go. The anxious look had returned to the fox's face.

"Shadow?" Tails called out apprehensively. "See you soon, right?"

The black hedgehog stopped and looked over his shoulder. He nodded his head. "Count on it."

And with a wave, he left the fox and made his way to the front gates. Once outside, he automatically reached into his pocket to ensure the card Sonic had given him was still there. Having satisfied himself that it was indeed there, Shadow then directed his attention in the direction of the village of Geneshire, beyond which he would find a path to The Great Palace.

It was still early in the morning; much too early to go pay someone a visit, especially the King. He doubted in fact whether Sonic was even out of bed yet; he had a feeling Royalty did not rise at the crack of dawn. It would be wise to delay his departure to the palace for at least another hour. However, Shadow was not planning on turning around and heading back to his cabin. He had already planned this out. It would take him a good two hours to walk to Geneshire on foot (taking into account brief stops for resting), and then another hour and a half to reach the Palace from there.

Travelling on foot would lengthen the time of his journey immensely, but Shadow was adamant in not letting anyone know what he was planning to do. Ergo, he was going to walk there, and not hire a cart to take him there. He would remain inconspicuous, and would even save some money. And get some extra exercise, though he did not need it. All to ensure, as stated previously, that no one knew what he was setting out to do.

And what was he going to do? Well, he was going to do exactly what he had told Tails: to go to The Great Palace, and have the King answer a few questions. As of yet, Shadow was not convinced that he was the King's long-lost sibling. He still thought it too unlikely and far-fetched an idea. No, he was not heeding Sonic's indirect request to come meet him to prove that he believed the blue hedgehog; he was doing it for understanding: to solve the puzzles and queries that had been roaming through his mind since yesterday.

Thrusting his hands into his pockets, Shadow began his slow yet steady march to Geneshire, his eyes lowered to the path he was treading and not where he was going. With nothing to keep his mind occupied, his thoughts began to wander back to the cause of his confusion; to the perplexities lying within his mind.

After over two hours of silent walking, the black hedgehog came to a sudden halt, looking up from thoughts ahead of him. He was currently standing on the top a grassy hill, at the sloping bottom of which he could see the large, circular village of Geneshire. He still had a ways to go before reaching the iron archway that marked the village's entrance.

As the wind blew up the hill and rustled the hedgehog's quills, he did not make his way down just yet. His crimson eyes narrowed as he spread his feet apart, eyeing the distance carefully. Taking a deep breath, he started running down towards the village. Why was he doing this? Certainly not because he was impatient and wished to reach his destination quickly; neither was it due to worry that he might be delayed if he did not hurry. No, it was not anxiety that propelled the hedgehog. It was curiosity.

As Shadow ran down the hill, he quickly picked up speed thanks to the aid of gravity. He pushed his body to make him move as fast as he could, not slowing down despite the dangers that were present when running down-hill at full speed. All Shadow cared about right now was going as fast as he could. And indeed, he was descending rapidly, uplifting a trail of dust behind him as he ran. Soon, he had picked up enough speed that the descent, which would have taken another five minutes at walking pace, was over in one.

Sliding clumsily to a stop and actually digging a trench into the dirt from his momentum, Shadow panted slightly and looked back up the hill. His mouth twisted into a frown of dismay.

_Not fast enough_, he noted bitterly, clenching his teeth angrily. The little procedure had been a test of sorts, to see whether he could reach the same speed he had reached during his race with Sonic; or at the very least, one that was close to it. However, despite the fact that the distance he had just travelled should have been long enough for him to obtain that speed, Shadow had not even come close. Yes, he had just gone faster than he normally did (though the added effect of gravity may have had something to do with that), but he had not been able to get himself to move as quickly as that time. It was that inexplicable burst of speed that had Shadow stupefied; he was determined to find out how, and _why_, he had been able to run so fast.

Tearing his eyes away from the hilltop, Shadow strolled into the village and, after a quick pause of consideration, made his way to a restaurant for breakfast. After a lengthy walk like the one he had just had, the hedgehog was starving, his stomach already growling in protest.

The village itself was just waking up from its slumber. Shops were only now opening and accepting customers. Men were starting to leave their quiet abodes for work, while the women began their household duties. Slowly, the streets of the large village began filling up with people; masses of people that automatically weaved around each other on the way to their respective destinations. Making his way through the hustle and bustle, Shadow entered an inn, the bell above the door chiming at his entrance, and seated himself at a table by a window.

The Salty Croc: that was the name of the establishment, consisting of a hotel above a linked diner. Due to the breakfast rush having concluded, the eatery was mostly vacant right now, with the only occupants being Shadow, and a black-and-white badger in one corner. Otherwise, the only other people here were, of course, the staff of the restaurant; who, at the moment, were not present in the room or behind the counter. Shadow had to only wait a few seconds, before an apron-clad waitress came strolling out from the back and over to him, pen and paper in hand as she looked down expectantly at Shadow. Shadow looked up through idiosyncratic eyes of disinterest, but offered a faint nod of acknowledgement at the female.

"Mina," he murmured softly by way of greeting. The banana-yellow mongoose smiled affably at the black hedgehog, pushing a lock of purple hair out of her green eyes before speaking.

"Morning, Shadow. It's good to see you. You'll be having the usual, I suppose?" she asked. The blacksmith nodded silently in reply, which prompted the mongoose to jot down something on her notepad before heading behind the counter and relaying Shadow's order to the unseen cook. Once she was done, she walked back to Shadow and sat down across the table from him, eyeing him expectantly.

"You're out here pretty early, aren't you, Shadow?" she remarked warmly, leaning back in her chair and crossing her legs as she scrutinized the hedgehog with interest. "It's been months since you came up to Geneshire. Why the sudden change of heart?"

Shadow turned his emotionless eyes away from the window he had been gazing out of and to the mongoose. Mina was - for lack of a better word - one of his "friends", though the word was used lightly. Shadow did not really have friends, only people he got along with and people he didn't (the latter group, incidentally, seemed to outweigh the former in terms of "members"). Nonetheless, Mina was one of the few people who Shadow bothered to give the time of his day to, or to mingle with - when he could, of course.

As Mina had alluded, and as anyone would have guessed by now, Shadow did not leave Sir Robotnik's complex very often, and as such he visited Geneshire very rarely. Why, had it not been for the fact that this restaurant was Shadow's favorite in town, and thus was frequented by him as often as he could, he would not have been on as pleasant as terms with Mina as he was right now. Even if the ever-curious and amiable mongoose was always chatting with the diner's customers, of which Shadow had been no exception.

Every time Shadow visited the restaurant, Mina would always sit down at his table and talk with him, asking him about his day and such. The first few times, Shadow had been curt and uncooperative, assuming that she was simply attempting to flirt with him; and that "paranoia" was not due to a narcissistic attitude, rather due to experience. Shadow may have been reclusive and thus interacted rarely with the public, but even _he _noticed the way women seemed to gawk at times. Hell, even the few female staff members at _Sir Robotnik's _often cast those (disgusting) gazes his way. However, in this case, the waitress seemed to seek nothing but a platonic relationship, and once the hedgehog had realized this, he had lightened up slightly. He wasn't yet at the stage where he would spill his guts to the girl, but at least she had managed to get Shadow to look in her direction for more than a second.

A slow smirk slid its way onto Shadow's mouth as he, too, leaned back in his seat, crossing his arms across his chest. "I've got some things to do here today," he replied ambiguously. "It'll probably take me a few hours to get everything sorted out."

"A few hours?" Mina repeated. She smirked as well. "And Sir Robotnik's just letting you go off for so long? I thought you said he was the micromanaging type?"

"Oh, make no mistake, he is," Shadow confirmed with a light chuckle. "He's assigned me someone else's shift instead, so that I'll have to end up working two shifts in a row."

"Ah, that sounds more like him. So I'm guessing Jet is this "someone else", eh?" Mina laughed. "Your boss sure does love to keep things heated up between his employees, doesn't he? It's a wonder how he's managed to stay so successful, if half of his employees have a reason to hate each other."

"Or him," Shadow added. "Sir Robotnik loves drama, and you can bet he'll do his utmost best to keep life in that complex interesting. I don't blame him. It gets pretty boring in there, seeing the same faces, experiencing the same routine every day."

"At least he can leave at anytime for a change of scenery. Unlike you guys. He's the owner, after all."

Shadow snorted. "I doubt he even trusts _himself_ that much; not enough to wander into the outside world and "risk having his ingenuity stolen", as he puts it. In fact, I can't even remember the last time he actually left the compound…"

The two were silent for a few seconds, most likely because Shadow seemed to have dropped into thought mid-conversation; a bad habit of his, unfortunately, but one which the mongoose was all to aware of and used to. Eventually, Mina cleared her throat and picked up the conversation once more.

"So how's Tails these days?" she asked affectionately. "I haven't seen him for ages. He didn't come with you this time?"

Shadow looked up at the cheerful waitress, before shaking his head. "No, not this time. What I've got planned for the day would probably be too "professional" for him."

Mina chuckled appreciatively. "What? Looking to make an investment for your future or something?"

"… You could say that."

Fortunately, Mina did not seem to catch the sudden evasive tone that Shadow's voice undertook, for at that moment they were interrupted by the arrival of the hotel's owner: a tall, bright green crocodile by the name of Vector.

"Mina! Why aren't you working? I don't pay you to sit around chatting with the customers!" he barked to the mongoose, his loud, grating voice booming throughout the room.

"Sorry, Boss," Mina replied off-handedly at what was her employer's standard way of "greeting" her. "I'm just trying to make our customers' dining experience interesting. Besides, sometimes a friendly conversation can do wonders for your day."

The owner of The Salty Croc snorted at the remark. "Looks more like you're being nosy, if you ask me. I don't like that. You need to mind your own business, you know. Quit the chit-chat and go serve the customers."

Mina raised an eyebrow at the reptile before gesturing around the interior. "What customers? The only ones here are Shadow and that old badger, and he's already got his meal!"

Vector glanced around the restaurant, noting that Mina had a point. Instead of replying to the mongoose, he decided to turn to Shadow and address him instead. "Been a while since I've seen you here, Shadow. What brings you to Geneshire today?"

"Business," Shadow replied shortly. Though he was not intending to be rude, the answer would certainly seem as such. That is, had it been delivered by someone other than Shadow, for whom such replies were characteristic.

"Oh? What kind of business?" Vector asked curiously, slipping into the seat beside Mina and gazing at Shadow with an interested eye. "Anything interesting I should know about?"

Vector seemed to miss the way Mina rolled her eyes at him, which was followed by a covert look she threw Shadow. A look that said plainly: _Now _who's being nosy?

Always one to keep in touch with the latest gossip, it was Vector's tendency to gather as much information as he could from others, whether they were customers or simply people he met on the street. The crocodile was always eager to hear stories and rumors about others; the more incriminating or puzzling, the better. In this way, the crocodile was always at the top of things, always the one who ended up _giving _out information. If there was anything to be heard around town (or even the entire Kingdom) then The Salty Croc was the place you would most definitely hear it from. If not from Vector himself, then from the customers he had already told. It seemed that, if you wanted some info, you went to Vector.

Exactly why the crocodile was always keeping his ears open for the latest gossip, Shadow had no clue. Perhaps it was merely childish curiosity? Or could it be an actual desire to obtain benefit or profit using that knowledge? Shadow was certain that, with the croc's sharp mind and his cunning disposition, Vector could easily achieve the latter. Sure, the crocodile had one of the worst tempers Shadow had ever seen (one which tended to make you burst with laughter at his subsequent clumsiness rather than be intimidated), but that didn't change the fact that Vector had an ambitious streak in him. He always "aimed for the top", as they say. Really, what would you expect from someone who had originally been the gardener of a noble family, only to one day end up starting his own successful business? And all with such efficiency and ease as to make it appear premeditated?

A sly smirk etched itself onto Shadow's face. "Now now, Mr. Vector, didn't you just finish lecturing your employee on minding her own business?" the ebony hedgehog teased. "It doesn't set a good example if you don't practice what you preach, does it?"

Vector smiled back at Shadow just as slyly. "Well, _someone's _gotta keep in touch with the latest goings-on. After all Shadow, you know that if there's anyone in this town who knows anything about anything, it's me."

"Well, if that's the case, then you should already know why I'm here, shouldn't you?"

"Err…" Vector smiled weakly at Shadow in defeat before shrugging and getting to his feet. "Aww fine, you win. But you're no fun, Shadow. Ya need to stop being so lip-locked all the time." He nodded his head down at the hedgehog. "I'm headin' off now. Got places to be and things to do. Mina, don't do anythin' dangerous while I'm gone, got it? I don't want a repeat of what happened last time…"

"Hey! That weasel deserved it! He said I sounded like a howler monkey when I sing!"

"Well, you didn't have to go and pour all his soup down the front of his pants! Especially since he was a Duke and everything," Vector grumbled as he placed his bowler hat onto his head. "I still have nightmares about that bill he sent me!"

He gave a visible shudder, as if he were suddenly reliving the experience. Mina rolled her eyes once more, but Vector ignored the action and made his way to the exit, vanishing through it with a wave of his hand. A second later, he poked his head back into the structure and looked over at Mina.

"Oh, and Mina, we're almost out of potatoes and radishes. Be a dear and order some more, will ya? And have them send over some chickens as well."

The amber mongoose frowned. "That's not my job, it's -."

But Vector ignored her reply with a literal "'Kay thanks, bye" before exiting the restaurant, leaving a disgruntled Mina glaring at the swinging doors.

"God, he drives me so crazy sometimes," Mina muttered, turning back to Shadow, who was smirking faintly at the occurrence. "Half the time it's like _I'm _running the business. Most of the time he's out partying and flirting and doing God-knows-what-else! He barely does anything!"

"Hmph, doesn't sound so bad. Mind switching bosses with me?"

Mina grinned cheekily at the leering hedgehog. "No thanks, Shadow. I'd much rather be an over-worked employee than be treated like a slave or a prisoner. No offense, though."

"None taken," Shadow responded good-naturedly. "The pay is pretty good, you know. Although, I'll agree it isn't easy working for Sir Robotnik. Working here might not be so bad. Plus, there's always plenty to talk about, isn't there?"

Mina nodded at the last remark. "Yep, you can bet on it. If it's not your usual wives' tales or village gossip, then it'll be about the Royals. We get a lot of the knights and palace's workers down here, and they often have some interesting stories to tell."

Mina suddenly tapped her chin with a finger, as if she had just remembered something. "Speaking of which: I heard the King came down from his palace yesterday, heading beyond Geneshire. People are saying he went to talk to Sir Robotnik. Is that true?"

Shadow's ears had twitched the slightest at the mongoose's words, but he had otherwise maintained his composure of aloofness. "The King? I don't remember hearing Sir Robotnik say anything about that," Shadow lied, his voice not carrying any detectable signs of falsehood. "But then again, I may have missed the news. If the King did pay a visit to the complex, then no one's been talking about it; as far as I know."

Mina frowned. "Everyone seems to think he needed Sir Robotnik to make something for him. Something special. But I don't really buy it."

"Oh?"

"Well yeah. I mean, why would the _King _go all the way down to a metal smith company and make a request in person? I'd have thought he'd have summoned Sir Robotnik to The Palace instead. I'm guessing he had some other reason for going there, but I've no clue what it is." She looked at Shadow inquiringly. "What do you think?"

Shadow kept his features steady and controlled as he looked Mina in the eye. "You're probably right. It would seem odd for King Sonic to go through all that trouble. Maybe he did come for another reason…"

Shadow's sentence trailed off at the exact moment the bell on the counter rang, drawing Mina's attention away from him. Realizing that the bell indicated that Shadow's meal was ready, the mongoose hurried over to the counter and brought over Shadow's tray. She laid it down on the table before the hedgehog and smiled down at him.

"Anything else you need?" Mina asked politely as Shadow picked up his fork. Shadow shook his head wordlessly, prompting the mongoose to leave the hedgehog to his meal in peace. Once she was gone, the hedgehog's eyebrows furrowed in thought as he once more began pondering about Sonic's visit, the story he had told him, Shadow's plan for the day, and what Mina had just told him.

_News really does travel fast,_ he mused grimly.

* * *

**Author's Note: Whew! Long chapter, this; close to six-thousand-words.**

_**To ballandcup: **_**Heh, keep guessing. I can assure you that that won't be happening. I'm not even sure I'll be using Scourge in this story; not too fond of him, you see.**


	7. Palace

**Author's Note: Hmm, does this chapter have some long-awaited encounters in it? Surely it does...**

**Disclaimer: Sonic the Hedgehog is the sole property of Sega.**

* * *

**Palace**

_**Date: 27**__**th**__** May**_

A quarter of an hour later found the blacksmith standing outside the entrance of The Salty Croc. Now that he had satisfied stomach, Shadow turned his gaze over the heads of the numerous villagers and in the direction where he knew The Great Palace of Segaco was located. It was actually visible from this distance: the palace sat atop an ascended cliff of sorts, accessible via the long, winding road that led from the lower-elevated Geneshire to the glamorous, golden gates of the palace. The rising Sun was partially obscured behind the multitude of towers and turrets erecting from the top of the building. The national flag of Segaco could be seen flapping proudly in the wind from the top of the highest tower.

However, he did not make his way there yet. He still felt it too early to pay the King a visit, no matter how urgent he thought the matter. Even if he still had around an hour's worth of travel left to complete to reach the palace, he was planning to delay his trip a little longer. As such, Shadow began strolling through the town. He did not waste his time sightseeing, though. When he had told Eggman, Mina, and Vector that he had some work to do in village, he had been sincere - in a sense. Shadow did indeed have a few errands to run in Geneshire, which he was aiming to complete while he waited for time to pass by. Thus, the next hour went by in Shadow visiting shop after shop, not to buy anything, but to inquire, request, make orders, etc.

Finally, when he had deemed enough time to have passed, Shadow exited the last shop and set out for the palace, this time not required to push and struggle through a crowd to get where he wanted. "Rush hour" was long past, with everyone already having reached their destinations and begun their daily routines of life. As such, Shadow sauntered down seemingly deserted and serene streets. His journey soon brought him to a left corner which ended up bringing him on a path that would lead him out of Geneshire and directly up to The Palace.

His face set in determination, the ebony hedgehog began his trek uphill to the breathtaking structure.

Roughly eighty minutes later, a slightly tired (and impatient) Shadow was approaching the elaborately-designed, metal gates of The Great Palace. Standing on either side of the closed gates were two alert, uniformed bloodhounds with spears in their hands. One a dull gray coloring and the other a pale brown, the two hounds were clearing sentries assigned to stand guard at the gates. Indeed, the fact that the gray bloodhound narrowed his eyes at Shadow from under his feathered hat, followed by the curt raising of his hand to signal the hedgehog to stop, indicated as such.

"That's far enough, sir," the bloodhound declared in a fittingly rough, growling voice. "No one is allowed into the Palace without a permit."

Shadow calmly reached into his trouser pocket and extracted his wallet.

"Will these suffice?" he asked, handing the indigo card and a copy of his own identification to the guard. The hound took the rectangular cards in his hands and peered down at them suspiciously. His drooping eyebrows then rose in surprise as he read the words on Sonic's card; it was clear that he recognized it to be the work of the King.

"Well, this is surprising," the hound remarked in awe. He glanced down at the other card Shadow had handed, the one that had the hedgehog's name and a picture of his face on it. After confirming that the person in the image was indeed Shadow, the hound glanced at his partner and then back at Shadow.

"Yes, these are good enough," the gray bloodhound confirmed with a nod. He handed the two cards back to Shadow and stepped back. As Shadow slipped the items back into his pocket, the brown hound moved to the gates and opened them. He pushed them back and stepped aside for Shadow to pass through. With a nod of silent thanks, the blacksmith stepped through the metal gates. The gates closed behind him with a loud clatter as he walked away. Behind him, the two hounds exchanged looks of puzzlement before staring wonderingly at Shadow's back.

However, Shadow did not notice the pairs of eyes burning holes into the back of his head. He was too preoccupied with the scene before him.

He stood in the front garden of the palace, a large expanse of lush, green grass that stretched before him, all the way to the walls lining the palace. Tall, leafy trees lined the perimeter to his left and right, their foliage swaying gently in the wind. A multitude of flowers, of species that Shadow had never even seen or heard of, were aesthetically scattered across the grass. Currently, Shadow stood on a wide stone path that ran ahead in a slightly snaking manner to the front doors of the building. A large, gold fountain, crafted in the shape of a majestic swan in mid-flight, was directly ahead of him on the path. A stream of water fell out from the swan's open beak, while several jets of water rose into the air around it and fell back into the circular basin beneath.

Giving the garden a look of awed admiration, Shadow continued up the path and past the fountain to the palace. He didn't meet anyone else on the way, most likely due to the fact that it was probably still too early for anyone to take a leisurely walk through the garden. After all, though Segaco boasted an enjoyable climate, the early morning air was often too chilly for enjoyment. It was usually about four to five hours after dawn that the temperature rose to a more "soothing" level.

Climbing up the marble steps to the door, Shadow paused for a second. He glanced up thoughtfully at the large, gold and red doors, and then around himself. There wasn't anyone guarding the entrance. Was he supposed to just walk right in? Or should he wait for someone to come outside and ask if he could enter? He suddenly decided against that. The guards at the gate had let him in after seeing his invite, therefore so should the others; they no doubt meant for him to head right into the palace after letting him in.

With this thought process, Shadow gingerly pushed the door and stepped inside. His feet once more stepped onto marble, this one a beige shade as opposed to the pearl white stairs outside. Shadow raised an impressed gaze upwards, noting the high ceiling and the numerous chandeliers that hung from it. He then examined the room he was in, noting that it was a wide hallway that led to a circular room ahead. It was to this that Shadow strolled over to. Here, he found a wide flight of red-carpeted stairs that no doubt led to the higher levels of the building.

He made to move to the stairs, but stopped when he saw that there were more doors surrounding him. To be precise, there were three of them, all made of a dark wood of some kind, and all leading to who-knows-where. The ebony hedgehog frowned in annoyance. Which way was he to go? Should he take the stairs, or try one of the doors? Come to think of it, where would he even _find _the King? This palace was clearly enormous (one glance of it from outside would tell you that), so how was he going to find his way around it? There wasn't even a map or something.

_This is ridiculous_, Shadow growled in his mind. _I've barely gotten in here, and already I have no idea where to go. If only I could find someone to -._

"Hey, you! What are you doing in here?" a voice cried out suddenly from behind him.

_Bingo._

Shadow turned around to come face-to-face with a short, chubby mole. The mole peered at Shadow suspiciously from behind thick, circular glasses.

"Who are you?" he demanded, squinting up at the towering hedgehog. "Who let you in here?"

Shadow reached into his pocket and pulled out Sonic's invitation card and his ID, handing them both to the questioning mole. The shorter male took it and examined it carefully. Just as with the guards, he raised puzzled eyebrows at the words.

"Oh! Forgive me, sir," he apologized quickly, handing the cards back to Shadow. "I had no idea you're presence had been requested by the King." He smiled apologetically. "You'll find the King in the Throne Room as per usual, Mr. Shadow."

"Wait, where's -?" Shadow began, but he was too late. The mole had already hurried off and vanished behind a door.

"- the Throne Room?" Shadow finished lamely. The hedgehog's mouth curled downwards into a frown once more as he turned back to the various routes he had to select from. After a minute of fruitless examination, he sighed in defeat.

"I really hope no one ever finds out about this," he muttered bracingly. Placing a hand over his eyes, he pointed the other hand's finger at one of the doors.

"Eenie, meenie, minie, _moe_," he mumbled softly, directing his point in sync with the words. He then opened his eyes and saw that his finger was pointing at the staircase. Annoyed that, in the end, he had done something so childish only to pick the most obvious choice, Shadow climbed the stairs and rose to the landing at the top. Before him was a wall with a decorative tapestry hanging from it, while to each of his sides was another flight of stairs. Without deliberation, Shadow immediately took a left and ascended the steps. This brought him to a door, which he swiftly passed through.

A long, carpeted corridor with small windows lay ahead of him. He walked down it and turned the corner to find himself in another circular room with stairs ahead. Sighing, Shadow climbed them as well, this time taking a right. He passed through another door, this time emerging into a corridor, lined with several doors. He took the one at the end, ignoring the others.

Ten minutes later, and even a newborn would be able to tell you the obvious truth: Shadow was lost. He had passed through door after door, climbed more flights of stairs than he could count, and walked down more corridors than he would have liked. He had no idea where he was going or where he was; there were no maps or signs to aid him. He was going purely on instinct.

_Why is it that, when you're trying to sneak around someplace, there are people everywhere, but when you're lost, there's no one in sight? _Shadow wondered irritably as he pushed open another door. He had yet to meet any person in The Palace after his little encounter with the mole. He found it odd that; surely he must have run into _someone _by now? It was what, close to ten o'clock in the morning now? And yet there wasn't a soul in sight. Was security here really that lax, that someone could walk around completely undetected like Shadow? He could probably have broken in without anyone knowing. Though, that wouldn't have changed the fact that he was lost. He was searching for the Throne Room; too bad he had no idea where it was. It was expected, since Shadow had never stepped foot into The Great Palace before, and its layout was hardly public knowledge.

But wait! He'd found something!

No, wait. It wasn't the Throne Room. Shadow peered around curiously. It was another hallway (oh joy), with an arched ceiling this time, but this one was clearly more than just any other hallway. The high walls on either side of Shadow were covered, not in windows or tapestries, but paintings. Hundreds of them, hanging all over the walls stretching beyond him; far more than Shadow could count right away. Oil, water, paint, there was a large variety of them. They were of all sizes, some nearly fifteen feet tall and others barely two. But they all seemed to have one common feature, and that was the content of the paintings.

Hedgehogs: the paintings were actually portraits of hedgehogs, all dressed in the finest of clothing, and all looking flamboyant and powerful. The ebony hedgehog knew immediately what he was looking at. These were clearly portraits of Royalty that he was seeing: past Kings and Queens of Segaco. Having been a kingdom more many decades with a wealth of history, it was understandable that there were so many of them, but still did not stop Shadow from gazing around speechlessly. History was hardly a matter he cared for (neither was patriotism), but even he felt a little "warm and fuzzy" inside when looking at these pictures. True, he had no idea who the faces he was staring at belonged to, but he paid no attention to that. He had never seen so many well-made paintings before, least of all so many with hedgehogs on them.

"The Hall of Hedgehogs," Shadow remarked to himself with an amused chuckle. Of course, that was not the name of this place, but it seemed to Shadow that it should certainly be called as such. There were just so _many _hedgehogs!

Seriously, the only place you would find more hedgehogs than these would be in a Sonic fanfic filled with hedgehog OCs.

Because every other Sonic OC is always a hedgehog. Always.

Hell, even this story had that problem.

Ahem.

Aware that he didn't have time to stand around admiring art, Shadow glanced around himself and soon spotted a door. He passed through it and sighed automatically as he stepped into yet another hallway.

This one had a row of large windows opposite him, granting him a view of the large forest beside the Palace, a forest he recognized easily. This forest was dubbed "The Red Woods", the name having been taken from the fact that all the trees growing there were towering redwoods. What little geographical knowledge Shadow had told him that - based on the current direction he was facing - the village of Geneshire would be to his left, as The Red Forest was situated northward of The Great Palace.

Of course, it was not like this fact mattered to Shadow. No, what was more important to him was the fact that he was still lost. Frankly, he was getting sick of this. The Hall of Hedgehogs had only done so much to alleviate his frustration.

"Where the hell is everybody?" Shadow muttered to himself. There were several statues, busts, and suits of armor in the corridor. If he didn't find anyone soon, he might just start causing a ruckus and hope that _somebody _would come to investigate the disturbance. If no one did, and if he managed to find that damn Throne Room, he was going to have a serious talk with King Sonic about the lack of guards stationed around the palace. Seriously, by now he could have stolen a bloody door without anyone noticing!

It was at that moment when Shadow heard a soft humming to his left.

Crimson eyes snapped in the aforementioned direction and he caught sight of a small, pink hedgehog standing further down the hallway with her back turned to him. She was apparently gazing out an open window at the village in the distance, her head bobbing sideways slightly as she hummed loudly. Her fuchsia-colored outfit alluded to Shadow her high social status, but again that did not matter to him. All he cared about was that - finally - he had found _someone _to ask directions from.

With a relieved sigh, Shadow moved to the pink hedgehog, who seemed unaware of his presence; and for good reason, as Shadow was as silent as his name might suggest. Not intentionally, but more out of habit, brought about by a desire to remain as inconspicuous as possible, and draw as little attention to himself as he could. As he would say when asked, Shadow preferred to keep to himself and out of other people's focus; he didn't like it when he was in the spotlight, which was why he had learned the habit of being as quiet as possible. As such, he was approaching the pink hedgehog with his silent footsteps.

Once he was close enough, Shadow extended a hand forward to tap the much shorter female on her shoulder.

"Excuse me, Miss, could -?"

A firm hand suddenly closed around Shadow's shoulder like a vice, and before he knew it, Shadow had been yanked into the air and slammed forcefully onto the marble floor. The hedgehog landed on his back hard and grunted in pain from the impact. A moment later, a hiss of pain escaped his lips as a sharp, metal heel pressed down on his sternum.

"Keep your filthy hands to yourself," a female voice snarled aggressively from above. "No one touches the Princess, _peasant_."

A wincing Shadow looked up through slightly-watering eyes at the female bat standing over him, the sharp heel of her steel-tipped boots pressing mercilessly against his chest. Unlike the female hedgehog beside her, this bat was dressed more like a male, her outfit consisting of dull shades of green, gray, and brown. The bat's azure eyes were narrowed venomously as she frowned down at the hedgehog. Clearly, she was his assailant, though the reason behind her seemingly unprovoked attack was unknown to Shadow.

Shadow grimaced and clasped a hand around the female's ankle, trying to push it off, but the bat maintained her firm position.

"Do you mind?" Shadow growled up at her, tugging at her ankle irritably. "I think you're standing on my heart. I need it for pumping blood and staying alive. You know -." He glared up at the bat. "- little, insignificant things like that."

The bat narrowed her eyes at his sarcastic tone, applying more pressure to his chest. Shadow growled once more in pain and shot another fierce glare her way.

The pink hedgehog beside the taller bat peered curiously down at Shadow.

"Who are you?" she asked, in a tone that was polite yet authoritative. "Who let you in here?"

Shadow slid annoyed eyes to the hedgehog. "The guards, that's who," he stated, electing to reply to her second question first. He moved his hand to his pocket to pull out the two cards he was carrying, but his arm had barely gotten close to his trousers when the bat slammed her other foot on top of his wrist, pinning it down and halting its motion.

Shadow narrowed his eyes at her. "Relax, missy, I'm not going to pull out anything lethal," he spat vehemently.

The bat raised her eyebrow at him. "And you think I'll believe you?" she demanded skeptically.

"Oh no, you're completely right," Shadow sneered nastily. "Because I would _certainly _try and pull a fast one on the person that has a pointed heel jabbed into my heart."

Sky blue eyes flashed in anger, and once again the bat pressed her foot down on Shadow's sternum; and once again, the hedgehog hissed in pain and fury.

The pink hedgehog shook her head disapprovingly at the bat. "Lady Rouge, please stop that," she commanded sternly, placing a hand on the other's shoulder. "Let him stand up."

"As you command, Milady," the bat named Rouge replied obediently, immediately lifting her feet off Shadow and stepping back. Growling, Shadow rose to his feet, massaging the spot which Rouge had been standing on. He was sure he was going to find a nasty bruise there later on. Not to mention, he was sure that a few strands from the white tuft of fur he had on his chest had been pulled off from all that forceful rubbing.

"My, aren't you a charming one," Shadow sneered sardonically at the bat. Ignoring the glare Rouge shot him, Shadow handed the two cards on his person to the pink hedgehog.

"The King asked for me," Shadow explained matter-of-factly as she took the cards and examined them. Rouge looked over the shorter female's shoulder at the cards. As Shadow expected, both women glanced at each other in confusion upon reading the inscription. The pink hedgehog looked up curiously at Shadow, while the bat did so in suspicion.

"Oh! I had no idea the King asked for you," the female hedgehog remarked. "Are you a friend of his?"

"In a sense, I suppose," Shadow replied evasively.

"Well, you'll find him in the Throne Room," the hedgehog informed, handing back the cards. "I was just on my way there. Why don't you come with us?"

Shadow nodded at her offer. "Thank you," he answered simply, pocketing the cards. Then, deciding he may as well be a bit friendly, he added: "And may I ask who you are, Madam? Assuming, of course, -." He leered at the white bat. "- that "Lady Rouge" thinks it safe?"

Rouge's eyes flashed angrily at Shadow's comment, but she did not retaliate; physically at least.

"This is Princess Amy, daughter of King Quill of Soleanna," the bat snapped. "You would do well to show her some respect, _peasant_."

"_Peasant", eh? _Shadow noted in amusement, smirking faintly at the tone in which it was said. However, he did not dwell on the word, instead turning to "Princess Amy" and greeting her politely. The Princess smiled at him.

"Any friend of King Sonic's is a friend of mine, Mr. Shadow," she stated pleasantly.

_Ah, so she's one of those types_, Shadow noted cynically.

Out loud though, he said: "Perhaps you should lead the way to the Throne Room, Your Highness?" He delivered this suggestion while trying to sound and seem as polite as possible. He ruined it by turning to Rouge and adding:

"Also, why don't _you _walk in between us?" he offered with a mocking grin. "That way you can ensure I don't lay my "filthy hands" on your Princess."

"If you do, I'll make sure you can never use those hands of yours again," Rouge threatened.

"Ooh, I'm quaking in my boots."

Death glares were exchanged between the two.

"Umm," began Amy uncertainly, before pointing to her right. "The Throne Room is this way. Follow me, please."

She led the way with Rouge right behind her, and Shadow following them. As if to please the bat, Shadow stayed five paces behind the two of them, doing his best to ignore the covert glares that Rouge was throwing his way. He had more important things to worry about than an aggressive woman.

Five minutes later, after descending a flight of stairs and passing (to Shadow suppressed fury) through a door the dark hedgehog had opted not to go through, they ended up in a hallway facing a pair of majestic golden doors. It was to these doors that Shadow was led, where two armored knights stood at guard, halberds clasped tightly in their hands. They paid no attention to Princess Amy and Lady Rouge as they walked through the doors, but Shadow could feel their inquisitive gazes on him from behind their lowered visors. Ignoring them, Shadow stepped through the doors behind the two females, and finally found himself in the Throne Room.

A dark blue hedgehog started and looked up from the large, gold throne he sat upon at the sound of the newcomers. His emerald green eyes brightened in pleasure at the sight of the ebony hedgehog.

"Shadow!" Sonic exclaimed jovially, jumping to his feet in excitedly (and in a very "un-kingly" manner). As he rose, he hurriedly stuffed a small piece of paper that was in his hand into his pocket. No one mentioned this noticeable action; instead they all watched as the King positively beamed across the room at Shadow.

"So you came after all!" Sonic continued happily.

* * *

**Author's Note: Yes, ****I had to put that part about OCs in there. It just infuriates me how OCs are rarely animals _other _than hedgehogs...**

**So, this is an early update. Cause for delight, right? Well, don't get all excited, it comes with a catch. **

**See, I've got some academic responsibilities to deal with at the moment, so I'll be off on a break from writing for an indefinite amount of time. I can't say how long my absence will be; maybe one month, or slightly more/less. But don't worry, I'm not abandoning this story. So WHEN I return, I'll have my focus back on _Kinship._ But at the moment, academic life is asking for my attention. So, laterz.**


	8. Questions

**Author's Note: Can it be? Ulkira's back?**

**Disclaimer: Sonic the Hedgehog is the sole property of Sega. I do not claim any ownership.**

* * *

**Questions**

_**Date: 27**__**th**__** May**_

"So you came after all!" Sonic continued happily.

"Yes, I did," Shadow confirmed the King's words, folding his arms across his chest. "But make no mistake, Your Majesty. I'm not here because I - because I _agree_ with your words."

The break in his speech had not been one of nervousness, but one of uncertainty. He had originally been aiming to say "because I believe I'm your brother", but had quickly changed his mind and altered his words. Shadow had glanced out of the corner of his eyes at the two females beside him at the exact moment as his pause, wondering whether they were aware that Sonic thought Shadow was his brother. They may or may not, but the blacksmith would hazard a guess at the negative, for if they did know, then both Princess Amy and Lady Rouge would have shown some sign of realizing why Shadow was here. However, their ignorance conveyed to Shadow the fact that they were not in the know. If that was the case, then Shadow was in no hurry to reveal that information to them, or anyone else for that matter. Not until he was one-hundred-percent sure himself.

"I'm here," Shadow continued calmly, watching Sonic, "to ask you a few questions."

Sonic blinked, and then smiled appreciatively. "Well, it's a start, I guess," he admitted, before turning to face Amy.

"My love, could you please leave Shadow and me alone for awhile?" he requested politely, smiling at her in a fatherly fashion.

"_My love"? _Shadow repeated in wonder in his mind. He surveyed the two hedgehogs. _What, are they a couple or something? _

Being as politically ignorant as he was, it was no surprise that Shadow had yet to hear of the engagement between King Sonic and Princess Amy. But then, what would you expect from the person who didn't even know the name of the former Crown Prince until _after _said Prince's coronation, when his name had been announced along with his new title? History and politics were two of the many subjects which Shadow cared not for.

Amy glanced from Sonic to Shadow, her expression conveying her curiosity. However, she did not press for any information, simply nodding to the King.

"Of course, My King," Amy responded. She gestured to Rouge. "Come, Lady Rouge."

"Yes, Milady," Rouge answered automatically, following the fuchsia hedgehog to the door. She threw another look of disdain at Shadow, who frowned back at her and unconsciously rubbed his bruised chest.

Sonic noted the glances between the ebony hedgehog and the ivory bat, and smiled humorously as he sat down in his throne once more.

"Has Lady Rouge captured your heart, Shadow?" Sonic teased playfully.

Shadow frowned. "More like trampled it under those metal boots of hers," he snarled, taking his eyes away from the doors through which the two females had just left and towards Sonic.

Sonic chuckled softly at Shadow's words. "Ah, she must have thought you were trying to flirt with the Princess," Sonic explained with a knowing nod of his head. "Yes, Lady Rouge _can_ be a bit -."

"- insane?" Shadow offered, tilting his head meaningfully.

"I was going to say "overprotective"," Sonic remarked with a humorous grin. His hand then rose to his jaw and he tapped his chin thoughtfully with a finger. "One of my knights suffered her wrath due to this trait of hers."

"Oh? One of your knights flirted with the Princess?" Shadow asked, raising an eyebrow in wonder.

Again, Sonic laughed. "Oh no, nothing like that. He was merely being polite, greeting her and showing her his respect. Unfortunately, Lady Rouge misinterpreted his actions to be lecherous and - well - she ended up throwing him across the room and into a wall."

"… Oh yes, _definitely_ not insane."

"She apologized once she realized her mistake."

"Hmph. I sympathize with the knight. He was probably livid."

"Oh no, he was very considerate. He acknowledged that it was a simple misunderstanding and accepted her apology." Sonic suddenly clapped his hands together, grinning pleasantly at the darker hedgehog. "But enough of that! You came to ask me some questions, right? I would be happy to answer any query you have."

"Right."

Shadow was silent for a moment while he considered, stroking his chin (unbeknownst to both hedgehogs) in a manner reminiscent of Sonic when he was pondering over something. He was collecting his thoughts, going over all the questions he had decided to ask the King, and making ensuring there wasn't anything he'd forgotten.

It might have been safer to simply write them down, but then anyone would be able to tell why he had come here; and the whole point of coming to the Great Palace in the manner he had had been to ensure that no one know why he had come, or even that he had come in the first place. He didn't want people talking, after all. There was no telling what people's imagination would lead them to assume, or suspect. The fact that word had already spread so quickly that King Sonic had gone to _Sir Robotnik's Metalworks_, and seemingly not to make a request, made Shadow want to keep this meeting as secret as he could. Why, if Mina could come so close to guessing the true reason behind the King's visit, then others surely might have reached the same conclusion as well; and if they found out the Shadow had gone to visit the King just the day afterwards, then they would certainly be able to put two and two together afterwards. The blacksmith didn't want that to happen.

Sonic watched the ebony hedgehog patiently, awaiting his inquiries with an interested tilt of his head and his idiosyncratic smile. After a few seconds of silence, Shadow at last spoke up.

"Why did you challenge me to a race?" he asked slowly. "You knew something was going to happen, didn't you? You expected me to keep up with you." Shadow peered at Sonic curiously. "How did you know that? _Why _did you know that?"

Shadow awaited a response, but Sonic did not respond immediately, instead watching Shadow thoughtfully. Eventually, he pointed a gloved finger at the wall behind Shadow.

"Shadow, do you know what that is?" he asked randomly. Puzzled, the black hedgehog looked over his shoulder and spotted a banner hanging on the wall, this clearly being the object that Sonic was pointing at. The banner was a deep blue, rectangular sheet of silk, hanging horizontally above the door so that its wider end was parallel to the floor and ceiling. At the center of the banner was a large, gold circle with three parallel, fine, gold lines extending out from behind it, though none of them were actually connected to the circle.

Shadow turned his gaze back to Sonic. "That's the national flag of Segaco," he stated, still confused.

Sonic nodded. "Yes, it is; and, do you know why it has that design on it?" he further questioned, indicating the circle and the three trailing lines behind it.

"No," Shadow replied honestly with a shake of his head.

Sonic tilted his head at him. "Well, do you know _when _this design was created for the flag?"

Again, Shadow shook his head in ignorance; though the expression on his face alluded to the irritation he felt. Why was King Sonic asking him these irrelevant questions? Wasn't Shadow the one supposed to be doing the questioning right now? Besides, what did a silly flag have to do with Shadow's query?

Upon seeing Shadow's negative response, Sonic smiled mysteriously at the black hedgehog. "Shadow, have you ever heard of King Warvern?" he suddenly inquired.

Shadow cocked an eyebrow at the cerulean hedgehog, his state of confusion escalating even further. But this time, Shadow nodded his head in affirmation. Yes, he had heard of "King Warvern" before; there weren't many people alive who did not know of him, or who had not heard of him at least once. He was a very famous figure from past history; something which could perhaps be supported by the fact that even Shadow, who only had a limited knowledge about the world's past, knew who this person was.

King Warvern: one of the previous Kings of Segaco, from an era several centuries in the past. Warvern was - and is still to this day - regarded as the most terrifying ruler ever to reign over Segaco or any other land. A tyrannical dictator with an enormous ego and megalomaniacal ambitions, Warvern had managed to conquer over a third of the entire world's populace during his rule. He had spread his unjust and ruthless rule across the world to the other Kingdoms, enslaving them and adding them to his empire. Brilliant, tactical, and ruthless, Warvern was heralded to be deadly both in the war room and in the battlefield: his own cunning was rivaled only by his deadliness in battle. Such were the immensity of his actions' infamy, that he soon earned the renowned title of "Warvern the Demon".

Warvern's conquest and reign were not accepted by all, and numerous lands - lands which had yet to fall under his dictatorial rule - rebelled against him in what is still considered to be greatest war in the history of this planet; a war that lasted nearly four decades. Cities were torn to the ground; entire civilizations were wiped out; whole races were massacred; blood flowed throughout the lands. As many had described it back then, the world itself was being torn to pieces by Warvern's war.

It was only after Warvern was assassinated by his own son (who had been disowned and exiled for daring to speak against his father's oppression) that peace began to return to the lands. But the damage had been great, and it had been carved deep into everyone's memory. As a tribute to all those who had suffered by Warvern's hands, a new chapter was added to the history books, a new "beginning" as it was. Thus, the year in which Warvern perished, and in which Segaco and the other nations returned to their peaceful ways, was classed as an epoch, and known henceforth as 0 P.W. (Post Warvern). This was to ensure that no one ever forgot the horror brought about to the world by that one hedgehog.

But all that was history, as well as beside the point; at the moment, Shadow could not understand what Warvern had to do with the current situation. Before he could voice this, however, Sonic fortunately chose to finally shed some light on Shadow's confusion.

"I'm sure you're well-aware of King Warvern's actions in the past," Sonic began, his voice taking on a serious tone and the pleasant expression on his face being replaced by a more sober look. "While they were far from good, his actions and achievements were nonetheless of note-worthy quality. It is also of significant importance how his traits enabled him to accomplish these feats; particularly one trait of his, a physical trait that he was the first to possess.

You see, though many are not aware of this, Warvern was blessed with the ability to move at incredible speeds, speeds which are beyond normal people's capabilities. It was a genetic trait of his, a mutation you might say; one whose existence is known only to the Royal Family of Segaco. They (as in, the historians of my family) believe this is what made him so deadly in battle, for he could cut down hordes of enemies in seconds using his speed. Even Warvern's son, King Rueben II, possessed this trait. Again, it was most likely this gift that enabled him to slay his father, for it is was hypothesized that only someone as fast as Warvern could have stood a chance of defeating him. After the war, King Rueben had passed this trait onto his children just like his father did to him. Many amongst the Royal Family have been born with this ability henceforth."

Sonic paused in his tale to allow a smile to return to his temporarily grim features. "As you saw yesterday, I also have this ability. Just as my father, Sunlock, did, and just as his father did."

The words sank slowly and carefully into Shadow's mind as he realized what the King was saying. His eyes narrowed in thought as he eyed the King pensively with crimson eyes. The black hedgehog finally spoke up.

"So in other words, the Royal Family of Segaco - the descendants of Warvern - all have the ability to move at high speeds," Shadow summarized slowly. His pensive gaze turned into an unreadable one as he looked at Sonic with blank, red eyes. "And since I was able to keep up with you…"

Sonic nodded as Shadow's words trailed off. "Yes, Shadow. Only a member of Segaco's Royal Family can keep up with one of its members." He gestured to the flag behind Shadow. "That circle on our flag, it was designed in the year 50 P.W., after it was discovered by the Royal Family that Warvern's mutated gene was a dominant one. The ability had been usable by all of Rueben's descendants from then, and as a sign of pride, this flag was created. The circle represents King Rueben II, curled into a ball, while the three lines behind him indicate high speed. It symbolizes the unique bloodline of Segaco's Royal Family; a bloodline which you, Shadow, can be seen to share."

Shadow stared at the flag once more, lost in thought. He wasn't going to doubt Sonic's words, at least not the historical parts. The part about Shadow being a Segaco Royal because he could run as fast as Sonic, well… He was still skeptical about that.

"So then!" Sonic clapped his hands enthusiastically together and smiled happily at Shadow. "Is there anything else you wanted to ask me?"

Slowly, Shadow turned a vacant face to look at Sonic. Did he have anything else to ask? Originally, yes, he had had a great number of things to clear up; but now, after Sonic's little exposition, Shadow did not really have that much left to ask. Or rather, the remaining questions had no worth anymore; he didn't require an answer for them anymore. That being said, there were still some things he didn't understand.

"So let me get this straight," Shadow began slowly, gesturing pointedly at the King with a bare hand. "You think that I'm your brother, your twin, just because I can run as fast as you can? Just because I have an ability which you claim only your family has?"

The hedgehog's tone could be heard to hold tones of disbelief in them, even mild amusement. It was clear that he was highly entertained by this thought. Sonic, despite noticing this, merely nodded in reply.

"Indeed. What other explanation might there be?" he answered, spreading his arms wide at the hedgehog as if to convey ignorance.

"So that's it, then?" Shadow remarked incredulously, an eyebrow raised at the King; he actually sounded like he was going to laugh. "That's all you had to go with? You didn't have any other method of confirming I was your brother? What if I hadn't inherited this "high-speed" gene?"

Sonic smiled approvingly. "I thought you might ask that. To tell you the truth, I was not sure whether you had inherited the gene or not; that was merely a baseless assumption of mine. Still, I turned out to be right, didn't I?" His smile widened and he chuckled good-naturedly. "As for whether I had another method of confirming your identity… Yes, I did. Something which, I believe, would have still convinced me that you were my brother; even if you _didn't_ have the gene."

"And what might that be?" Shadow demanded, not too politely.

Sonic smirked and rose to his feet, walking down the steps and towards the door. "Follow me, and I'll show you," he informed Shadow as he passed by him on the way to the the golden doors.

Interested and curious, Shadow fell into step behind him and followed the King as he led him out of the Throne Room. As the hedgehogs exited the room, the two knights at the door made to follow King Sonic, but the latter forestalled them with a wave of his hand and a casual "No need, my knights". Nodding, the knights resumed their positions beside the doors as Sonic and Shadow trekked off. In a matter of minutes, the two hedgehogs were passing through a door into a very familiar room.

"The Hall of Hedgehogs?" Shadow blurted out loud, forgetting for a moment that said name was an invention of his and not an actual one. Understandable, as he was too puzzled by the fact that Sonic had led him here, and was wondering what possible motive there could be behind this.

Sonic laughed at Shadow's words. "Is that what you call it? Actually, it's called "The Hall of Kings"," the blue hedgehog stated. He grinned thoughtfully. "Although, I do like the sound of "The Hall of Hedgehogs"; it does seem rather an appropriate name, doesn't it?"

With another hearty laugh, Sonic led Shadow down the hallway and past the multitude of paintings of Kings and Queens long deceased. Shadow did not pay much attention now to the portraits around him: his curiosity was eliminating any awe or interest he had for these pieces of art. He merely followed Sonic as he led him over the red-carpeted floor, noting that they had not entered from the same place Shadow had. They were probably much further down than that.

Finally, Sonic came to halt and turned to face Shadow. With a knowing grin, he directed the other hedgehog's attention to the large portrait hanging on the wall behind the blue hedgehog.

"What do you think of this portrait, Shadow?" he asked calmly. Shadow looked up through disinterested eyes at the painting behind the King. However, his eyes immediately took on the opposite type of expression once he saw the contents of the painting.

It was full-body image of a hedgehog; more specifically, a _female _hedgehog, one of an exquisite beauty and graceful demeanor. She was dressed in a lacy, decorative dress of a pale lavender shade, with a tea cup and saucer in her hands as she sat on a comfortable-looking and decorative chair, her gentle mouth smiling down at him. The hedgehog's quills, elbow-length and swept downwards, curled under her lower jaw from the front to fall over her shoulders, while a few bangs hung between her warm, affectionate eyes; eyes of a very familiar color. In fact, the female hedgehog's eye color was not the only familiar color scheme on her person. Those jade green eyes, and that smooth, cobalt blue fur - they both reminded Shadow of the very male hedgehog that stood beside him.

"Who - who is she?" Shadow asked as he looked down at Sonic inquisitively, though he felt he already knew the answer.

"That," Sonic began with a warm grin, "is my mother: Queen Sonia."

Shadow turned his eyes back to the portrait. So, this was Sonic's mother, the long-departed wife of Segaco's previous king. Shadow had not heard much about her, only snippets from older folks who remarked that she had been a beauty of beauties, with a heart and soul as pure and rich as gold; a woman loved and venerated by all, like the rest of her family. Beyond that, Shadow had heard nothing about her, aside from the fact that she was, well, dead. He had never even seen a picture of her before, though that had more to do with a lack of interest than anything else.

However, right now, gazing up at this picture, Shadow was realizing what many had no doubt already noticed, and commented upon: King Sonic bore a striking resemblance to his mother.

But Shadow still did not see the importance of this.

"Why are you showing me this?" Shadow asked, looking once more at Sonic. "Why did you bring me here?"

The cerulean hedgehog laughed softly. "Well, I figured you might want to know what our - _my - _mother looked like," he answered simply. He then smirked inexplicably. "And also, I wanted to show you _this_."

He gestured lazily at something behind Shadow. Exasperated, the blacksmith turned around to behold another large portrait hanging on the wall behind him.

Crimson eyes widened in disbelief.

A black hedgehog stood in the framed portrait, a black hedgehog dressed in a white tunic and a pair of trousers of a granite gray shade tucked into black shoes with pointed tips. A floor-length, amber woolen cloak with a furred collar was draped over the hedgehog's shoulders, underneath which he wore a granite gray waistcoat over his shirt. In his right hand, he held a golden scepter with a jeweled top, and on his head he wore the very same crown Sonic wore at this time. Beneath the golden accessory, Shadow could see the crimson streaks on the hedgehog's short quills, which were styled into a five-pointed-star; the streaks were the same color as the warm, twinkling eyes that peered out of from the hedgehog's smiling, complacent face.

Sonic sidled up beside Shadow, grinning at the stupefied expression on the latter's face.

"This - this portrait -," Shadow began slowly.

"- is of my father, King Sunlock," Sonic finished with a nod. "More accurately, this is a portrait of him from over three decades ago. Back when he was around, oh, our age, I'd say…"

His grin shifted into a wily one as he continued to look at the stunned Shadow. "Uncanny resemblance, wouldn't you say?" he remarked slyly.

Shadow blinked and came back to his senses, pulling his eyes away from the captivating picture and to Sonic. Seeing the cerulean Royal smug grin, the darker blacksmith quickly averted his eyes and glanced down at the floor.

"Eh, I don't see it," he mumbled uncaringly; a lie, of course. Shadow wasn't one to spend hours staring vainly at his own reflection, but even he could spot the obvious likeness between himself and this - this person.

Sonic raised an eyebrow in amusement. "Oh? Then I suppose you won't agree that I bear a striking resemblance to my mother?" he inquired teasingly, sliding over to stand beside the portrait of Queen Sonia.

Shadow looked carefully from Sonic to the Queen, and back. He then grinned mischievously.

"No, you're right, Your Majesty. You _do_ look rather feminine," he responded humorously.

Sonic blinked, and then laughed affably. "Heheh! Well, I suppose I walked right into that one," he admitted with an embarrassed scratch of his head. He let his hand fall to his side, and tilted his head curiously at Shadow; his face, though still holding its jovial look, nonetheless seemed to appear serious once again.

"You asked me whether I had another method of ensuring you were my brother. Well, I'm sure you've pieced the answer together now. Even if you had not inherited Warvern's speed, I would still be convinced you were my sibling; because of how you looked. Father had told me in his letter that, just as I resembled my mother, _you _resembled him." He smiled pleasantly. "There aren't that many black hedgehogs in this world, after all."

Shadow did not respond, instead looking away from the King and at the carpeted floor; his brow was furrowed in thought, his mouth curled downwards in a frown. He looked uncertain and unsure. Noticing this, Sonic reached into his pocket and pulled out a slip of paper - the same slip of paper he had hidden there earlier upon Shadow's arrival. He then held it out to the blacksmith, a meaningful look on his face. Realizing instantly what it was, Shadow wordlessly took the sheet of paper and unfolded it. He then lowered his crimson eyes down to read the neat script of gold words written on the sheet.

The seconds ticked by in silence as Shadow read the contents of the paper. King Sonic watched the blacksmith attentively, watching his face for any emotion; however, the ebony hedgehog's face was as still as a rock as he read. It was only after he had finished reading that Shadow's mouth thinned into a line. Without a word or any other display of emotion, he handed the paper back to Sonic, the handwritten words seeming to dance before his eyes as he pondered over them grimly. The letter Sonic had gotten from the chest - King Sunlock's final words. In his mind, Shadow could hear King Sonic narrating the words on that paper to him, just like when he had narrated the tale upon their first meeting. Though summarized and rephrased, the message behind the written and verbal words was the same. Yes, it was the same.

The ebony hedgehog looked away from the Royal once more and at the carpet, his forehead crinkled in thought once more. Sonic watched Shadow patiently with interest, still holding the letter in his hand.

"So, do you have any other questions to ask me?" he eventually inquired in a genial tone.

Slowly, Shadow turned contemplative eyes to Sonic. "No," he replied slowly and quietly. "No, I don't suppose I do."

True, Shadow had come here with many questions in mind, but after the recent events, he felt they were all unnecessary. He didn't need any more answers. He didn't need to ask anything else. He felt he had learned enough. He felt…

"I think… I think I'll be going now," Shadow stated deliberately. "I have some… thinking to do."

He made to turn around and walk away, but was halted by Sonic speaking up once more.

"There's no reason to rush, my friend," the cerulean hedgehog assured, taking a step towards the darker one. "At the very least, as you're already here, why don't I give you a tour of The Palace?"

Shadow looked over his shoulder at the glowing Royal. "I have work to do," he replied shortly, though not rudely. "I must hurry back in time for my shift. Eggma - Sir Robotnik does not tolerate unpunctuality."

Sonic smiled confidently. "I'm sure your employer will understand if you were tardy because of the King," he remarked surely. He held out a hand to the darker hedgehog in a gesture of invitation.

"Come, let me show you around my home," he offered.

Shadow looked down at the gloved hand, before sighing. "Very well, I'll stay a little longer." Despite his mood, he still allowed a faint smirk to appear on his other emotionless face. "In fact, I wouldn't mind learning a bit more about the layout of this place. If I hadn't run into the Princess earlier, I would probably still be wandering the palace looking for your Throne Room."

Sonic gave a hearty laugh at this. "Yes, I've been told this place can get rather confusing," he agreed.

* * *

**Author's Note: ****T****his was a fun chapter to write, I'll admit. I particularly enjoyed coming up with the part about Warvern. Not that vital a part of the story, but I like giving this little world I've created a solid history. You can expect to see things like this throughout the story.**

**"You _do_ look rather feminine". Hehah.**

******Anyway, those pointless comments aside, it's time for some important news for you all regarding my activity. Although I'm back, I sadly won't be as active as I was before. I've got some free time to work on _Kinship_, but I'm not sure whether I'll be able to update it as frequently as I used to. So unfortunately, my dear readers, you won't be getting a chapter every week, though I'll do my best to make sure you still get an update on a regular basis. Not longer than a chapter every two weeks, I'm hoping. Bear with me, please.**


	9. Trophies

**Disclaimer: Sonic the Hedgehog is the sole property of Sega. I do not claim any ownership.**

* * *

**Trophies**

_**Date: 27**__**th**__** May**_

The king and blacksmith left the Hall of Hedgehogs - err, Hall of Kings - to begin the tour, with Sonic obviously leading the way. For the next several minutes, Sonic showed Shadow around the inside of The Great Palace, bringing him to areas such as the armory and trial room (locations where the knights would often train to evaluate their skills or test another's). Both these rooms were locked at the moment, thus Sonic could not take Shadow inside - not that the blacksmith minded so much. Shadow was also shown the wing of the palace where the kitchen was located. He caught a glimpse of a few of the many chefs and cooks inside, all hurrying back and forth between stoves as they prepared the next meal.

Sonic led Shadow expertly through the numerous and confusing hallways inside the Palace, the entire time offering the black hedgehog pieces of information about the various rooms they visited or certain works of art that they passed by. Shadow was already struggling to remember all the corners they turned and floors they ascended or descended; add to this all the things the King was telling him, and receiving all that information at once was at times overwhelming for the blacksmith. The fact that it was mostly historical information that Sonic gave him (what else would you expect from a tour?), coupled with the fact that Shadow absolutely _hated _History, left him often drifting away mentally from Sonic's words. However, Shadow was no jerk (not completely, anyway), so he tried his best to pay attention to Sonic and the tour. After all, the King was going out of his way to show Shadow around personally, when he could just as easily have gotten one of his "minions" to do so instead.

Speaking of which…

"There's something I've been wondering about," Shadow spoke up as they walked down a flight of carpeted steps. They had just exited the wing where the bedrooms and quarters were. Sonic looked expectantly at Shadow. The latter glanced around himself before continuing.

"Where _is _everybody?" he asked curiously. "I spent maybe ten minutes wandering around this place, and I didn't meet or see a single person. Not one knight, not one servant; no one. So where is everyone? I would think a palace this big would be chalk-full of people."

Sonic nodded at Shadow's words. "Yes, you'd think that," he agreed. "But to be honest, there were never many people living in this palace. The King's direct family lives here - as in myself - along with the King's Knights. Various other workers and staff reside here as well: cooks, custodians, sentinels, stable boys, and the like. Nobles often come here to spend time with the Royals, but even that is an infrequent sight. Other than that, no one else lives here; excluding of course, Princess Amy and her caretaker, Lady Rouge."

"So in other words, aside from the usual workers and knights, the only person who lives here is you," Shadow summarized. Sonic nodded in confirmation. "Huh. Well then, why haven't I seen any of these workers and knights yet? The only ones I've run into so far were the two guards at the gates, a bespectacled mole, and those two knights positioned outside your Throne Room."

"It's customary for the workers to return to their quarters or the recreational area built for them until they are called upon," Sonic explained. "Most of them are required to complete their chores early in the morning - such as the cleaning staff or the stable boys, for instance - and then repeat the work later in the day. As for my Knights, well, they are currently out on a training trip; they should be arriving any time today, I imagine."

Shadow cocked an eyebrow at the Royal. "You sent all your Knights out on a training trip?" he asked incredulously. "All of them?"

Sonic laughed. "Oh no, not _all _of them: but still a good majority of them. Some have remained behind so as to guard areas of importance in The Palace, such as the Throne Room where I usually spend the day, or other rooms of significance."

Shadow smirked knowingly. "You mean like a room filled with the King's gold?"

"Perhaps…," Sonic replied with a teasing grin.

"Well, I didn't see any knights guarding any rooms."

"Then that means you never strayed close to one of those rooms. That's really lucky for you, I should add; the Knights have been told to apprehend any suspicious-looking characters who come near those rooms."

"And I'm a suspicious-looking character?" Shadow remarked humorously.

"Well, you are a stranger to this place; that would suffice as a reason to incapacitate you."

"Great. Thanks for the early warning."

Their conversation came to a stop as they approached a set of silver doors. King Sonic pushed these doors open and stepped inside. As Shadow stepped into the room, he saw that it was as large a basketball court, with a ceiling as high as that in a cathedral. Large windows allowed golden beams of sunlight to engulf the room in its warmth. The floor below was marbled like the rest of the palace's interior. The national colors of Segaco draped the walls in the form of banners, the blue and gold lines seeming to glow from the Sun's rays.

Shadow slid his eyes across the room, taking in its contents. Numerous plinths and pedestals were arranged methodically within the room, each with a certain item placed atop it like some form of prized possession. Stands with rectangular, glass coverings were also present, each also housing an item under its glass top. Furthermore, the walls were lined with a variety of objects, hanging there in a manner almost like -.

"Trophies?" Shadow wondered out loud, turning to Sonic.

"Yes, these are all trophies," Sonic confirmed, gesturing grandly at the multitude of objects before them. "This is the Trophy Room, where we keep valuable objects from days past; not valuable in regards to monetary value, but in terms of history. These objects are prized and displayed here as a tribute and honor to their time. Anything valuable from the past, which now holds such a great significance, is displayed here. For example…"

He led Shadow to a certain pedestal with a red cushion on top of it, and a glass case above to protect the object inside. Said object was a granite gray, decorative dagger with a tapering, leaf-shaped blade. The blade was a good six inches in length, the handle a further three, and though its blade was not shiny or reflective like a steel blade, the weapon was clearly made of a metallic substance: a dull, smooth metal that looked like rock at first glance.

"This, Shadow, is the dagger used by King Reuben II to kill his father Warvern," Sonic explained, nodding down at the weapon. "After the Reuben's death, the dagger was treated as an artifact of history and has been venerated through the ages ever since."

"Interesting," Shadow mumbled, placing a hand on the top of the glass case and peering more closely at the dagger. The lack of a reflective surface meant the dagger's blade did not shine or gleam from the sunlight falling on it. The blade did seem to sparkle slightly, as if its surface was embedded with minute diamonds. The ebony hedgehog looked up inquiringly at Sonic, jerking his head at the weapon.

"May I?" he asked politely. Sonic looked at the dagger uncertainly, and then at Shadow, before nodding.

"Yes, you may," he answered. "But, please be careful."

Nodding, Shadow gently lifted the glass case off the pedestal, and with the soft hands of the blacksmith that he was, picked up the dagger from cushion. He held it in both hands and examined it for a few silent seconds, crimson eyes glinting with keen interest. Long, thin fingers slid over the object's surface with a surgical swiftness, seeming to gather information with their motion, information which was being transferred to their owner's scrutinizing mind.

"Surprising," Shadow finally remarked after half a minute of silence. "This dagger is of an extraordinary make; not a quality I'd expect from a weapon crafted from a time so long ago in the past. It weighs so very little, almost like a dining knife… A perfect distribution of balance between the handle and the blade… A handle that fits easily into one's hand, with a firm, steady grip - much better than most daggers of this era… And this material…"

As the blacksmith continued speaking, his voice was gradually decreasing in volume, so much so that in a matter of seconds he was completely silent one more. Sonic raised an amused eyebrow at the darker hedgehog and his apparent captivation by the dagger; he had never seen anyone so entranced by the dagger. Not even Sir Robotnik had shown this much interest in it when he had asked to examine it. Despite Shadow not having any such expression on his face, Sonic could practically see the giddy excitement in his scrutinizing eyes; it was like watching a toddler examining his newest toy. The King wondered if the blacksmith even remembered where he was right now, and in who's presence he was. He was certain that the ebony hedgehog's complete focus was on the weapon in his hands.

The ebony hedgehog slowly ran a finger over the flat side of the tapering blade, tracing the odd symbols etched onto its surface: symbols that looked like nothing more than curling and intertwining threads to Shadow. The blacksmith gently twirled the weapon in his hand, before lightly flicking the blade's edge against his sleeve. The stony-looking blade cut through the fabric dangling from Shadow's arm easily. Shadow then brought the side of the blade up to his face, holding the thin edge close to his eye at a perpendicular angle.

"Huh, it's still sharp, isn't it?" Shadow remarked in surprise, lowering the weapon and replacing it back onto its stand. He placed the glass case over it. "Even after all these years, this dagger is still in prime condition. Your staff's handiwork, I presume?"

Sonic scratched the back of his head with a gloved hand. "Well, a few workers come in here every now and then to dust the trophies, and sometimes when one of the items is deteriorating, we have it mended," he admitted. Jade green eyes fell upon the dagger lying unassumingly on the cushion. "But that dagger's yet to require any repairs. As you said, it's of an extraordinary make."

"Yes," Shadow concurred, looking down at the weapon once more. "And it certainly would have gotten the job done quickly. A blade as sharp as that one would have no problem penetrating chain mail, let alone flesh." He narrowed his eyes in thought. "I wonder how King Reuben came across it, and who made it for him…"

"As to that, no one can say. Apparently, the King never gave out that information to anyone," Sonic replied. The two hedgehogs continued to watch the dagger silently for a couple of seconds, until Sonic clapped his hands together cheerfully.

"Anyway! Let's take a look around, shall we?"

He led Shadow around the Trophy Room, stopping whenever something of interest caught Shadow's eye, and offering a short explanation on it as he had been doing all this time. Frankly, Shadow found some of the trophies to be worth his interest and subsequent attention. Not only were there weapons and tools from wars long past, but much simpler things on display, such as the favorite tea cup of a certain Royal or the best clothes of another. There was even an entire literature collection consisting of hundreds of books, which had all belonged to the enthusiast reader, King Bailen. Cleary, these trophies were ones chosen for the good memories they offered about notable figures from Segaco's past. They were, as King Sonic had mentioned, tributes.

"Well now, these are quite the eye catchers," Shadow observed in admiration, after nearly an hour of inspecting the room's contents. He and Sonic were currently examining the trophies hanging from the room's walls, and the ones Shadow was gazing at were indeed "eye catchers".

Sonic came up beside Shadow and followed his gaze to look up at the line of severed heads attached to the plinths on the walls. These were heads of what appeared to be viscous beasts of a diverse kind, all stuffed and glaring down menacingly at them. Pulling his eyes away from the growling face of a lion, Shadow cocked an eyebrow at the cerulean hedgehog beside him.

"Hunting trophies?" he asked. Sonic nodded.

"Yes. All great and fearsome beasts, all from days passed." The King eyed them all approvingly, before turning to Shadow. "But perhaps this one is the most noteworthy of them all."

He brought Shadow to one particular head, which was obscured behind a large purple curtain, and seemed to have an entire corner of the large room to itself. Indeed, given the copious amount of space that was behind the curtain, the blacksmith surmised that whatever was behind it would either be very large, or that for some strange reason it deserved a larger "display slot" than the other trophies. Furthermore, the manner in which it was being displayed made Shadow assume that, whatever was behind that curtain, was most likely of the most (historical) value of the hunting trophies he'd seen so far. Indeed, the joyously expectant expression on Sonic's face conveyed to Shadow that the King was expecting the blacksmith to be stunned by this trophy.

"This one here is quite the trophy, Shadow," Sonic remarked. He pulled on the string beside him, which then drew the curtains apart to reveal the hunting trophy behind it. As Shadow's eyes rose to peer at it, his eyebrows flew up in surprise and bewilderment.

The creature he was staring at was unlike anything he'd ever seen before. The head was reptilian and covered in a layer of red-orange scales, its height roughly equal to that a full-grown elephant. A long, narrow snout, with a beak-like tip on its upper jaw, protruded outwards from its face. Indeed, its properly-proportioned mouth was so large by itself, that Shadow was certain that two people his size could easily fit into the creature's massive mouth, and with plenty of room to spare. The two jaws were pulled wide open to bare its fearsome, pointed fangs, each one over six feet long. Terrifying, forward-swept horns grew out of the sides of the creature's scalp right behind its eyes, extending parallel to its snout and ending at the tip of its curved snout. A series of smaller spikes lined the top of the creature's head, swept backward and running from just above its streamlined forehead to the severed edge of its thick, serpentine neck. Though the creature was clearly dead, its gold, snake-like eyes seemed to be glowing with bone-chilling ferocity.

"What - what is it?" Shadow asked softly, eyes locked on the severed head. He suddenly realized how his voice had lowered into a near whisper, as if he felt the reptilian head might hear him and turn those frightening eyes towards him. He actually felt nervousjust by _looking_ at the head.

Sonic took a step closer to the trophy. "The Inferno Dragon," he answered in an equally soft tone. "Around four years ago, back when my father was still King, the Kingdom of Soleanna was being plagued by this beast. The best of Soleanna's warriors had gone to face it, but they were all defeated effortlessly. Many died, few returned. The survivors themselves were too horrified for a second attempt, not that their wounds would allow them to, even if they wished.

This dragon continued to terrorize Soleanna, and eventually King Quill began requesting the other Kingdoms to aid him, to help rid his land of the beast. Some answered his plea for help, but they too were unsuccessful. As if fear of this creature wasn't already so great, once word got out that warriors from other countries had been killed by it, the terror escalated to an even higher level. This led the remaining lands to immediately decline offering Soleanna any help: the Inferno Dragon's power was feared that much.

However, Father wished to help King Quill, regardless of the beast's lethality. He asked the strongest of his Knights that, if they were willing, if they could aid him in slaying the Dragon. The four knights agreed to kill the dragon for both Kingdoms' sakes. However, they refused to let Father participate in the battle, saying it was not wise for the King to place himself in peril like that. So, the Knights set out to Soleanna to confront the Inferno Dragon, and after a grueling battle, they were able to slay the beast and rid Soleanna of its terror.

King Quill was extremely pleased with this achievement. As a show of gratitude, he offered the head of the Dragon to Segaco to keep as a trophy. He further went on to say that Soleanna was in the debt of Segaco and its warriors; therefore, they could regard Soleanna as an ally and friend henceforth. King Sunlock gladly accepted their partnership, adding that Segaco would always be there to aid Soleanna in times of distress.

And such is how the great and unshakable friendship between Segaco and Soleanna was forged," Sonic concluded.

Shadow looked at him in silence with an emotionless face. Finally, after nearly five seconds of staring, he spoke up.

"You just recited that word-for-word from a book, didn't you?"

Sonic laughed sheepishly. "Err, yes…"

Shadow smirked and then turned back to look up at the Inferno Dragon's head. It was indeed a terrifying beast to behold, one that Shadow would not like to run into at any time during his life. Being as ignorant and out-of-touch with such things, Shadow had only heard vague stories of this creature, nothing enough to know just how big of an impact it had on Soleanna and Segaco. Hell, he thought it was just a fairytale or some drunken man's ravings, especially since everyone kept calling it a "dragon". But as he gazed up at the Inferno Dragon's fierce visage, he knew that this was not a fairytale, or anything of the like. This beast, whether it was really a dragon or not, had definitely been real, and it had most certainly been a frightening creature. How those four knights had managed to stand against a creature that was fearsome even in death, Shadow did not have a clue.

Although…

"Four knights…" Shadow repeated slowly. He shifted his crimson eyes to meet Sonic's emerald ones. "When you say "four knights", you mean the "Four Knight Commanders", don't you?"

The Four Knight Commanders: the strongest and most skilled of the King's knights. These four were the generals of the Grand Army of Segaco, as well as the heads of Segaco's Supreme Knight Order. Each Knight Commander had an entire battalion under his command, and was beneath only The Royalty of Segaco in status. Indeed, the Commanders were practically akin to royalty in terms of treatment. Four Knights, all of whom had proven their worth and loyalty to the Kingdom and its King. Such were the Knight Commanders.

"Yes, the Four Knight Commanders," Sonic affirmed with a nod. "They were the ones who took down the Inferno Dragon."

Shadow turned amazed eyes to the "dragon's" head once more. "I've heard that the Knights were extremely skilled and fierce in battle, but for them to best a creature as deadly as this one must have been… It seems they're more prodigious than most people think."

"Becoming a Knight Commander is no easy feat," Sonic stated with meaningful wag of his finger. "Only the best can obtain that rank."

"After seeing this trophy, I couldn't agree more."

At that moment, the doors behind them swung open with a gentle creak. The two hedgehogs turned as the newcomer approached them, the armor he wore classing him as one of King Sonic's knights. The male briskly walked over to Sonic and bent down on one knee, his right fist pressed against his heart.

"Your Majesty, we have returned from our training trip," the knight declared in a warm voice. Sonic smiled down pleasantly at him.

"Rise, my friend," he commanded gently. The knight did so, straightening up to his full height; and what a height it was. The knight easily towered over the King, and even the taller blacksmith barely reached to his chin. Among the three, this knight was clearly the largest present. Shadow was willing to bet this knight was as tall as Eggman, or perhaps only just.

Shadow scrutinized the knight further with interest. The warrior's full-body plate armor was a black color with trimmings of a brilliant shade of red. The steel surface reflected the light rays and, despite the few scratches and dents on it that were obviously brought about by battle, was so well-kept as to appear brand new. Under his arm, the knight held his helmet, a black sallet with a scarlet bellows visor. A broadsword could be seen hanging from his right hip in a scabbard matching the color of his armor's trimmings, while a two-handed hammer with a large, metal head was slung on his left.

The knight turned his uncovered head to look curiously at Shadow, his shoulder-length, dreadlock-styled quills swaying slightly from the motion. The warm, amethyst eyes held a look of interest in them as they peered down at the darker hedgehog; they seemed to contrast well with the vibrant red fur covering his face.

The knight was an echidna.

"Shadow, I would like you to meet "The Crimson Knight"," Sonic began proudly, gesturing to the knight in question. "This is Sir Knuckles, the Head of my Supreme Knight Order, as well as my closest friend." Sonic smiled affectionately at the red echidna. Sir Knuckles bowed his head in respect, before casting another gaze towards Shadow.

"And who, Sire, is this?" he asked Sonic politely, smiling affably at the expressionless Shadow. At this, Sonic's smile faltered momentarily, and Shadow's ears twitched ever-so-slightly. Each hedgehog shot each other a quick, meaningful glance from the corner of his eye.

"He's… a friend of mine, Sir Knuckles," Sonic answered slowly, turning back to Sir Knuckles and replacing the smile on his face. "I'm giving him a tour of the Palace, you see."

The one called "The Crimson Knight" watched King Sonic expectantly, as if waiting for him to continue. It was clear he wasn't going to just accept that as an answer and leave it at that. It was understandable, really. After all, how many royals spent their time in the company of people as low in social status as Shadow clearly was? Needless to say, you wouldn't expect someone dressed in the finest cotton to be hanging around someone wearing leather and wool of an average make.

Seeing that the knight was highly inquisitive, and not wanting to explain anything, Shadow murmured softly to Sonic, "I'll leave you two to talk."

He then sidled away from the two and began examining the other items on display. He didn't care if he was leaving Sonic in an awkward situation; this whole situation had been brought about by Sonic's actions anyway, all from having approached Shadow back at _Sir Robotnik's Metalworks_. Besides, Sonic should have an answer for anyone wondering what Shadow was doing at the Palace, or even why he was meeting with him. Or at least, Shadow assumed he did. Regardless, he wasn't going to stand beside the Royal and find out. Therefore, he directed his attention to the nearest trophy.

As the ebony hedgehog moved away, Sir Knuckles shifted his curious gaze from Shadow to Sonic, folding his arms over his chest and tilting his head at the King in an expectant manner.

"Now tell me, Your Majesty, who is that?" he inquired once more.

* * *

**Author's Note: Knuckles is a knight? There's a shock.**

**In case anyone's wondering what a plate armor, a sallet, and a bellows visor is, remember this: Google is your friend! Especially when it's with Wikipedia.**

_**To ballandcup: **_**Happy to see you're still here, Ballandcup.**


	10. Crimson

**Author's Note: Apologies for the delay, everyone. I was busy with college-work.**

**Disclaimer: Sonic the Hedgehog is the sole property of Sega. I do not claim any ownership.**

* * *

**Crimson**

_**Date: 27**__**th**__** May**_

"Your brother?" Sir Knuckles repeated incredulously at the conclusion of Sonic's reply. He turned indigo eyes of awe to Shadow, who was hunched over and peering into a glass case. He seemed absorbed in his inspection, his scarlet eyes narrowed in thought. Whether he was merely pretending to be captivated by whatever was inside it or was genuinely mesmerized by the sight, either way he did not look up as the crimson echidna looked his way.

"I would never have thought…," Knuckles whispered in amazement. He was staring at Shadow as if he was something he had never seen before. The indigo eyes were scrutinizing the ebony hedgehog carefully, as if they were trying to seeking confirmation of something by examining the hedgehog's appearance. And the longer the knight looked, the more his eyes widened, as if he was surprised by what he was seeing.

"Does he know?" the echidna asked suddenly, turning to look at Sonic interestedly.

"I've already told him," Sonic replied simply. "That's why he's here: to ask me a few questions about the whole situation. He was skeptical at first; I'm sure he still is. But I think I'm slowly making progress, my friend."

"Yes, I'm sure you'll succeed in due time, my King," Knuckles vouched confidently, turning back to look at Shadow. He blinked, his brow furrowed slightly in thought. "Still, a blacksmith of Sir Robotnik's… I would never have guessed that he had been so close all this time."

"I felt the same," Sonic agreed, looking over at Shadow as well.

"Fate sure has a funny way of doing things, huh, Your Majesty?" the Crimson Knight mused with an entertained smirk. A second later, though, the smirk was replaced by a slightly glum expression.

"If only you're father had known…," he mumbled softly in obvious depression. "How he would have wished to see him just once, before he passed away…"

The King's lower lip trembled in clear sorrow as he too, stated in a quiet tone: "Yes, he definitely would have wished that…"

The crimson echidna looked out of the corner of his eyes at his king, who was looking at Shadow with a gloomy glint in his emerald green eyes. The echidna than returned his gaze to the darker hedgehog before him.

Needless to say, Sir Knuckles, along with Sonic and the Counselor, were the only ones in The Great Palace who knew about Sunlock's final note to Sonic. As Sonic had mentioned, the echidna knight was his best friend, and as such Sonic had relayed to him the same tale he had narrated to his advisor and Shadow.

The son of one of Segaco's deceased knights, Sir Knuckles had been living at The Great Palace with the Royal Family for over a decade. After the echidna's father, Sir Locke, had died in battle, King Sunlock had taken pity on the orphaned boy. He had decided to honor the request of the departed Sir Locke to look after Knuckles. As such, a teenage Knuckles had been brought to the palace as per the King's request, and from then on he had lived there as a part of the family. With the age difference between Sonic and Knuckles being only two, the two quickly became close friends; both trained their sword techniques, rode on their horses, and performed many such activities together.

The well-mannered and gold-hearted echidna wanted to pay back Sunlock for his kindness, as well as do something that would have made his deceased father proud. Therefore, he asked the King for permission to be trained as a Knight of Segaco, an offer which was graciously accepted by the ruler. It was then that Sir Knuckles' immense talent and skill in combat was revealed, as well as his strategic and calculating mindset. The child was a natural warrior, one with an exceptional talent that rivaled even his dead father's. It was thus no surprise that he quickly rose among the ranks of his fellow knights, reaching the prestigious rank of Knight Commander in just five years, at the tender age of eighteen. This made him the youngest knight in the history of Segaco to earn this rank, and he was venerated for it still. Four years later, the echidna became the Head of Segaco's Knight Order, succeeding the previous one. He was now known to be one of the most powerful warriors in the land.

"Interesting…"

The ebony hedgehog was still looking into the same glass case as he unconsciously muttered those words. He seemed unaware of the fact that Sonic and Knuckles had just been having a hushed conversation, or that their faces had taken on an unexpectedly grim look towards the end of their discussion. All he seemed to be solely focused on was the object on the pedestal, beneath the glass case.

Clearing his mind of his sorrowful thoughts and returning his face to its usual expression of cheer, Sonic walked over to Shadow, with Knuckles right behind him. The black hedgehog looked up as the two approached, but did not say anything, instead returning his attention to the object of interest. With Knuckles standing silently behind the two hedgehogs, Sonic followed Shadow's gaze to the trophy before them.

It was decorative claymore, its bronze handle encrusted with small, reflective rubies, with a silver cross-guard shaped in the form of a four-pronged star. The steel blade lay sharp and unmarked on the red cushion underneath, the Sun's rays reflecting off its polished surface magnificently. The blade alone was nearly four feet in length, with the handle being about a further foot and half long.

"That was my father's favorite sword," Sonic said in reply to Shadow's unasked question. He gestured to it lightly. "He called it "The Iron Maiden"."

Shadow frowned in confusion. "It's made of steel," he remarked slowly. Sonic nodded with the same confused air.

"I know. I pointed that out to him as well," Sonic responded ponderously, glancing at Shadow. "I think he was trying to be funny."

"Ah."

Shadow extended his hand forward to lift the glass case off the pedestal and pick up the sword, but he stopped and looked at Sonic.

"May I?" he repeated once more. Sonic nodded in permission.

Shadow lifted the case up and placed it on the floor before taking the claymore into his hands, just as he had done with Reuben's dagger. And just as he had done with the dagger, Shadow ran a critical eye over the sword, making use of his experience with swords to inspect the weapon. As before, Sonic watched Shadow with an amused expression, one that was now shared by the towering echidna behind him. After a couple of minutes of silent inspection, Shadow then twirled the weapon in his hand a few times, before executing a few skillful, quick swings with it. Once he was done, he nodded down at the claymore approvingly.

"This is a good sword," he remarked, placing it back on its cushion and bending down to lift up the glass covering that would go over it. "It would definitely serve its wielder well, no doubt."

As Shadow placed the glass top securely back atop the pedestal, Sir Knuckles finally spoke up.

"You know a good deal about swords, don't you, Mr. Shadow?" he observed with a warm smile. Shadow looked at the echidna with his characteristic look of disinterest, as the latter continued: "I suppose you know how to use one just as well?"

A faint smile slid onto Shadow's mouth. "Obviously," he replied slowly, his voice tainted slightly with arrogance. "After all, I do make them. Besides, _someone _has to ensure they're fit for their purpose. Who better to do that, than the very person who crafted the sword?"

Sir Knuckles laughed softly, nodding his head in agreement. "Yes, that's true." He looked at Shadow thoughtfully. "What would you say to a little spar with yours truly, Mr. Shadow?"

Shadow raised an eyebrow, while Sonic looked up at the echidna in startled surprise.

"A spar? With you?" Shadow said slowly.

"Yes," Sir Knuckles answered simply, smiling innocently. Beside him, Sonic suddenly smiled in apparent understanding.

Shadow blinked as he stared at the knight. "Me? An amateur swordsman, duel you, the Head of Segaco's Knight Order? The Crimson Knight, one of the four warriors who managed to defeat a beast as deadly as the Inferno Dragon?"

His words held a slow tone of incredulous disbelief in them, before a slow smirk spread across his face. "Sure, why not? I see no problem with that," he replied with a touch of humor. Sir Knuckles smiled at the comment.

"Then let us make our way to the armory and get you a sword," he decided, turning around to make his way to the exit.

"Ah, I see," Shadow began as he and Sonic followed the departing echidna. He waved a hand around the room at the many prized swords on display, his next words holding a humorous tone in them. "I also wouldn't trust me to use these swords and _not_ damage them."

Sonic grinned at Shadow's words, whilst Sir Knuckles chuckled.

"Yes, you might say that," Sir Knuckles answered with equal humor, grinning at the smirking blacksmith as he led the way out of the Trophy Room and to the armory.

Two short flights and three hallways later, the single echidna and the two hedgehogs soon arrived at the wooden door to the armory, which Shadow recalled had been locked when he had last seen it. However, it had apparently been unlocked in between the two visits, for Sir Knuckles simply pushed the door open and stepped inside. As the king and the blacksmith followed the knight into the armory, Shadow casually realized in the back of his mind why the room had been locked until now. Obviously, as the King's knights had been out training, the room had been inaccessible; now, however, since they were clearly back, the lock had been unsecured. This was most likely to ensure that none of the knights' weapons and items were stolen in their absence.

And speaking of weapons and items… As he entered the armory, Shadow glanced around himself with interest at the room's interior, noting that everywhere he looked he saw a diverse collection of swords, mallets, spears, shields, armors, and many other weapons and items required by a knight for usage. He had seen plenty of such objects in his work, and had even made a few of them, but he had never seen so _many _of them together. It was a little overwhelming, to see that The Knight Order had these many weapons at their disposal.

Shadow was pulled out of his musings by Sir Knuckles' voice suddenly calling out loudly to the room: "Page! Come over here! Page!"

"Here, Sire!" a high-pitched voice answered quickly from behind him.

A second later, something crashed into a rack of shields behind the party, uplifting the entire rack's contents into the air; a few knocked into a large row of helmets on a nearby shelf, disturbing this shelf's contents as well. All of these items came crashing down onto the floor with a deafening clatter, burying whatever had caused this disaster under a metal pile of shields and helmets. A soft groan of pain could be heard from underneath the mess.

Shadow cocked an eyebrow at the sight and glanced over at the rest of his company to see their reactions. King Sonic was also looking down at the mess in surprise, his jade green eyes then shifting down to the single helmet that rolled pathetically towards him, before coming to a stop at his feet. Sir Knuckles, meanwhile, visibly sighed and pressed a metal gauntlet against his face, rubbing the ridge of his nose in apparent frustration.

"God, not again…," he muttered in exasperation, so softly that Shadow almost missed his words. Nonetheless, Shadow heard him and understood his tone, which resulted in a smirk appearing on the dark-furred one's muzzle.

"Sorry, Sir!" a voice squeaked out from under the pile. With a shift of the metal items, a small figure pulled itself out of the mess and rose into the air, hovering before the three with an apologetic grin.

Shadow turned around to face the figure, which turned out to be a small, male honeybee. This bee was dressed in a dull orange tunic and black trousers, as well as orange-topped shoes with black soles. Over his head, the page wore a black beret with a single red feather rising from the top. The bee's black-and-orange patterned antennae could be seen extending out of two holes in his beret. Gossamer wings were flapping rapidly as they kept the honeybee airborne, and were obviously creating the characteristic buzzing sound that was associated with bees. The page's wide, youthful eyes of a honey coloring were gazing respectfully at the Crimson Knight as he awaited his master's orders. Shadow guessed that this pageboy was perhaps no more than six or seven-years-old, maybe even eight.

The bee looked down frantically at the mess he had made, and then back up at the Crimson Knight. "Ah! I'm so sorry, Sir! I'll clean up this mess right away!" he stated quickly, waving his hands in a panicked manner at the knight. Knuckles sighed once more, and smiled pleasantly while waving a dismissive hand at the honeybee.

"It's alright, Page; don't worry about," he assured in a kind, fatherly tone. "I'll take care of it. In the meantime, I have something else I need you to do."

"Yes, Sire?" the pageboy asked eagerly, perking up at the knight's words. Said knight gestured to Shadow with his hand.

"Page, please help Mr. Shadow here find himself a sword and some armor," Sir Knuckles commanded, though with an extremely kind and affectionate air. "He and I are going to have a little spar, you see."

The bee blinked and turned to face the black hedgehog Sir Knuckles had gestured to. No doubt he was surprised to hear that the great Crimson Knight was going to have a casual duel with someone of Shadow's appearance. However, the page did not say anything pertaining to this, instead nodding his head fervently at Sir Knuckles.

"Yes, sir! Right away!" he announced energetically in an ear-splitting voice. He turned to Shadow and beckoned to him to follow. "This way, Mr. Shadow!"

The ebony hedgehog grimaced mentally at the thought that he would have this loud-mouthed bee accompanying him, even if it would only be for a few minutes. On the outside, though, he maintained a neutral expression and silently went after the honeybee. Shadow followed the lively honeybee as he led him further into the room, past racks and stands holding various metal and wooden objects. The pageboy led the blacksmith away from the voices of Sonic and Knuckles, who had begun cleaning up the honeybee's mess, and had broken into hushed conversation upon Shadow's departure. Knowing full-well that they were talking about him, Shadow silently followed the flying bee, who was now humming pleasantly. Soon, the two came to a stop next to a rack of swords.

"Here we are, Mr. Shadow," the page announced cheerfully, lowering his airborne height so that he was level with the swords. He looked up at Shadow. "You can pick any one of these, sir."

Nodding, Shadow stepped forward and ran a scrutinizing eye over the swords, inspecting them with the same experienced eye as before. Very soon, he was shifting various swords through his hands as he "felt" them. Eventually, he had found one to his liking, a double-handed long-sword with a red hilt and a diamond-shaped cross-guard. Sliding the weapon into its respective scabbard, Shadow then looked up at the young honeybee and nodded to indicate he was done here.

"Alright, sir, how about we get you some armor now?" the pageboy suggested, flitting through the air into another direction, with Shadow in tow.

He brought the ebony hedgehog to another rack, this one holding pieces of armor on them, sorted together based on the area of protection. Shadow glanced up and down the row, before making his way to the stack of cuirasses, scanning them intently with his crimson eyes. He soon found one to his liking; or rather one that he figured would fit him well. Stooping down on one knee, Shadow set the sheathed sword in his hand down on the floor and picked up one of the torso armor. Without waiting for Shadow's request, the pageboy fluttered over to the hedgehog and began helping him put the armor on. Once all the latches and flaps had been secured, he moved back to let Shadow examine the protective wear. The black hedgehog glanced down at himself, before nodding complacently.

"Well, I think this should be enough," Shadow decided, picking up his chosen sword from the ground and securing it to his right hip. The honeybee blinked at him.

"Are you sure, sir?" he asked, his wings flapping quickly as he moved closer to Shadow. "You should try a bit more on, just to be safe."

"I'd rather not," Shadow replied confidently, but making sure not to sound too curt. "Too much armor will merely slow me down." He nodded at the page in gratitude. "Thank you for your help, err, -."

"Charmy, sir," the page offered pleasantly. "My name is Charmy Bee."

"Right. Thank you, Charmy," Shadow continued, walking past the pageboy named Charmy and back the way they had come.

"You're welcome, sir!" Charmy called back happily. "It was nice meeting you, Mr. Shadow! And good luck!"

Shadow did not stop or turn around, but he did wave a hand to show he had heard Charmy. He continued making his way back to the entrance of the armory. Soon, he was approaching King Sonic and Sir Knuckles, who both looked up from their conversation at the sound of his arrival.

"My, don't you look dashing," King Sonic joked.

Sir Knuckles raised an eyebrow at Shadow. "Don't you want to put on a little more armor, Mr. Shadow?" he asked, nodding at the only piece of armor Shadow wore: the cuirass. "You know, just to be safe."

_Well, at least it's clear who that page's master is_, the ebony hedgehog noted amusingly.

"Why?" Shadow asked, glancing down at the armor piece that covered his torso. "I'm already covering everything important." He paused for a second, noting how the cuirass ended at his waist, leaving the remainder of his torso unprotected. He then looked back up at the King and his Knight.

"Well, almost everything," Shadow rephrased, shrugging in a "what can you do" manner. In response to this, the crimson echidna himself shrugged in submission.

"Whatever suits you best, Mr. Shadow," Sir Knuckles remarked in a friendly tone*****. "Shall we get going, then?"

Without waiting for an answer, he led the two hedgehogs out of the armory and through the palace. The echidna brought the party to a portion of The Great Palace that Shadow had yet to see, as he had not been brought this far during King Sonic's tour. Although, since they had only passed through hallways and no doors or rooms, it made no difference that Shadow did not know what the layout of this section was. Nevertheless, Shadow added the areas they passed to the mental map he was making of this place.

The blacksmith soon noticed that they were descending to the ground floor, and making their way to the one of the "backdoors" of the Palace. In a few minutes, the three males were stepping into a large, square courtyard at the back of the palace.

The majority of the courtyard was covered in pale gray bricks, namely in floor and the three surrounding walls (there was no wall directly opposite the three males). Shadow looked upwards and spotted numerous high balconies overlooking the courtyard from the walls around him. He lowered his eyes to the center of courtyard, where he spotted a marble rail enclosing a circular patch of dirt, with an oval-shaped balustrade supporting it. The rail's flat top was level with Shadow's waist, and its smooth surface was made of unblemished, pearl-white marble. Growing out of the dirt in the center of the circular rail was a majestic apple tree. This tree was bearing an abundance of its fruit; the apples dangling from its branches were a deep shade of red, and seemed to be of a great quality. As Shadow looked around the courtyard, he noticed the manner in which this apple tree was placed, and he couldn't help but wonder if there was some sort of significance or importance concerning the tree.

Sonic seemed to be aware of Shadow's unasked question, for he looked the ebony hedgehog's way and put forth helpfully: "That apple tree was planted by my mother. She was very fond of apples, you see, and always wanted to have an apple tree in her home."

Sonic walked closer to the tree and stood in its shadow, placing his hands on the rail and looking up at the beautiful plant with a pensive smile. As Shadow and Knuckles joined him in front of the apple tree, he informed the darker hedgehog: "Father was not very fond of them, though, but he agreed to let Mother plant a tree here; she could be _very_ persuasive, Father used to say."

"And even after the Queen's death, King Sunlock continued to look after the tree," Sir Knuckles added, shifting his gaze from the tree and in Shadow's direction. ""Just as my wife used to care for it", he would say."

"Charming," Shadow answered off-handedly, with a hint of uncaring disinterest in his voice. They stood admiring the tree for a few more seconds - or in Shadow's case scowling at it (he did not like apples, claiming that they were "too tasteless" and "watery" for his liking). Eventually, the trio resumed their course, walking past the tree and to the opposite end of the courtyard, with the Crimson Knight once more in the front.

Sir Knuckles led Shadow and Sonic across the courtyard and under a large, stone arch, one that had the image of a bushy tree engraved on its top. Beyond this arch was a wide expanse of lush green grass: a garden, one with a multitude of trees and hedges lining its border; this border consisting of a high metal fence, beyond which Shadow thought he spotted a maze-like arrangement of towering, thick hedges. Here and there on the inside of this garden could be found more trees, along with eye-catching arrangements of brightly-colored flowers. Wooden benches were situated at various spots on the springy grass, and there was even an intricate birdbath made of white marble near the center of the garden, in which two twittering robins could be seen bathing. In one corner of the garden was a large pond in a shape similar to that of a kidney bean. Ducks could be seen swimming across the pond's stagnant surface, while fat, croaking frogs sat lazily upon the numerous lily pads on the water.

Sir Knuckles looked around the garden appreciatively, a pleasant smile stretched across his face. "This should do nicely," he voiced happily, turning to face Sonic and Shadow. He nodded at the latter. "I usually come here by myself when I want to practice my techniques, or if I want to just relax. I find the atmosphere to be very cathartic here."

"Yes, it's very serene," Shadow answered uninterestedly, glancing around briefly before looking back at the Crimson Knight. He was never one to care for the beauty of nature, so he wasn't as impressed by the sight of this garden as he ought to be, even if it was a work of art. That being said, he was a little astonished with how well-designed it was, and he was being sincere when he said it was very serene. He certainly agreed with the knight that this garden had a very soothing atmosphere.

And they were planning on having a fight here. What irony.

"Shall we get started, then?" Shadow suggested, sliding his hand to the hilt of the sword on his hip. Sir Knuckles nodded, and two combatants stepped towards the center of the garden, while King Sonic moved away to watch from on one of the nearby benches.

Once they were in position, Shadow and Knuckles faced each other, setting a distance of ten paces between themselves. As the two eyed each other seriously, the air suddenly became thick with pre-battle tension.

_This should be interesting_, Shadow noted in anticipation.

* * *

**Author's Note: *Ooh, was that a pun, Knuckles?**

**Coming up next chapter, we have the first fight scene of the story. Or second, if you count that little tussle between Shadow and Jet back in Chapter 2.**

**Hmm, Knuckles had a pretty simple backstory, didn't he? But then, not everyone's life is a soap opera.**

_**To ballandcup: **_**And here I was thinking it would be obvious what Knuckles' role in this story would be. Guess I was wrong.**

_**To Lightningpool: **_**First, let me just say that I'm pleased to say you're still reading _Kinship_. As for the other three knights, worry not, they'll be revealed soon.**

_**To MiharuStar: **_**Welcome, Miharu. I thank you for the compliment, and I hope you'll enjoy all that's to come ahead.**


	11. Spar

**Disclaimer: Sonic the Hedgehog is the sole property of Sega. I do not claim any ownership.**

* * *

**Spar**

_**Date: 27**__**th**__** May**_

The echidna slowly unsheathed his broadsword and held it in his right hand, the blade pointed upwards. He spoke genially, "Since this will only be a friendly duel, Mr. Shadow, we won't be aiming to actually harm each other. The victor will be decided when the opponent tires out, gives up, or is forced into a situation where he would certainly be defeated in actual combat. In other words, when one of us is rendered incapable of fighting, the match is over and victory goes to the opposing fighter."

Shadow nodded, drawing his own sword and clasping both hands around the longer hilt (longer as compared to Knuckles', that is). "Fair enough," the blacksmith answered, spreading his legs and taking a fighting stance, with his sword pointed upwards and diagonally forwards, in the direction of the armored echidna. "Let's try and make this an entertaining fight for the King, shall we?" He jerked his head at the nearby blue hedgehog, who was seated calmly on one of the benches as he watched the two prepare for battle.

Sir Knuckles smiled. "I'll try and take it easy on you, since you're just a novice," he teased, placing his free hand on his hip and looking as relaxed as if this were nothing more than a mock battle with imaginary weapons.

Shadow smirked. "Why, thank you. I wouldn't want to die just yet; least of all at the hands of one of the King's knights."

With that, the two males charged at each. Once he was close enough, Shadow swung his arms forward and brought his sword flying towards the echidna. He didn't bother keeping the strength of his strike low, for his blade met another before it even came near the echidna's armor - as he had expected. Holding his sword in one hand as it clashed against Shadow's, Sir Knuckles grinned in appreciation at the hedgehog.

"A nice swing," he observed. "If I wasn't wearing any armor, that attack would certainly be one I would want to avoid. An admirable amount of power, coupled with a good balance of speed. However -." His grin suddenly intensified as he began applying pressure on Shadow's sword with his own. "- that power was still lacking!"

With a thrust of his arm, he pushed Shadow's sword off of his. The black hedgehog stumbled a few feet backwards, and just managed to step out of the way as Sir Knuckles jabbed his sword forward at his armored chest. The hedgehog veered around the knight's attack and to his side, swinging his sword lightly but speedily at the latter's arm. Just as before, the attack was blocked by Sir Knuckles, this time by the echidna arching his arm over his shoulder and holding his sword parallel to his spine, with the blade pointed downwards. Frowning, Shadow pulled back from the attack and put some distance between himself and his opponent.

"Good!" Sir Knuckles said, turning to face Shadow with the same relaxed body stance. "Keeping your distance from your opponent so that he doesn't pin you down or overwhelm you, and therefore allow yourself some breathing room to relax; that's a good idea. But…"

He suddenly dashed at Shadow, catching the hedgehog unawares with his speed. "To relax is to let your guard down!" he cried, raising his sword into the air and bringing it slicing down at Shadow. The hedgehog instinctively leaped out of the way; the blade of Sir Knuckles' broadsword struck the ground and dug into it momentarily.

The echidna effortlessly yanked it out of the dirt, and calmly pulled it upwards to block the horizontal slash from Shadow. The weapons clashed momentarily, before Shadow pulled his own back and launched another horizontal strike at his opponent. Knuckles blocked this one with the same ease as before, as he did the next one, and the one after that - all while using only one hand. It was after Shadow's fourth consecutive strike that the knight suddenly delivered his counterattack. He took advantage of the small time frame when Shadow had raised his arms to pull his sword back from the sword-lock; during this chance, the echidna swung his sword horizontally at the hedgehog's unguarded chest.

Shadow just managed to flip his sword around and bring it in the path of the opposing blade. However, he still struggled against the strength within the swing, his body trembling slightly as the force of the blow was transmitted through his sword into his body. Based on the power behind the attack, it would probably have left a nice dent in his cuirass had it hit its mark. However, based on Sir Knuckles' expression, Shadow surmised that the knight had expected him to be able to block the attack. Shadow's eyes narrowed the slightest as he surveyed the grinning face before him. This person had certainly had an ulterior motive when he had suggested this spar.

"You have good reflexes, Mr. Shadow," Sir Knuckles complimented. "Even most of our knights wouldn't have been able to avoid a sudden counterattack such as that; particularly one delivered by me." His last words may have sounded conceited, but Shadow was certain they were perfectly true. Even he was surprised that he had managed to block the attack. It had certainly caught him off-guard, even though he had been expecting Sir Knuckles to counter at any moment. The speed of the delivery, as well as its abruptness, had been unexpected, and as the knight had implied, Shadow had succeeded thanks to his quick reflexes. Funnily enough, the hedgehog hadn't even known he had such good reflexes.

But there were more pressing matters to attend to at the moment.

Without waiting for a reply from Shadow, Sir Knuckles had freed his sword from the blade-lock and had once more swung it at Shadow, this time delivering a speedy vertical chop. Shadow thrust his long-sword up perpendicularly to meet the attack with the flat side of its blade. The blades clanged together for a second before Sir Knuckles pulled back, and then immediately lunged forward for another attack. The taller echidna delivered powerful strikes relentlessly at the hedgehog, pushing him back step by step with the immense strength of his blows; and the knight was only using one hand, too!

_This is getting ridiculous_, Shadow thought irritably as he blocked another overhead strike from the grinning echidna. As the Crimson Knight lifted his sword off of Shadow's parrying one, the latter used the momentary chance to dash out of the way of the next attack. Shadow swerved around his opponent, but rather than try and strike him in the back (and have his attack blocked as usual), he continued his path away from the knight. He had to get some distance between himself and his adversary. Despite the unyielding manner in which Sir Knuckles had been delivering his attacks, the only one who seemed to be getting worn out by the relentless assault was Shadow. Thus, he had to get out of his opponent's attack range lest he get pinned down or overwhelmed to the point where defeat was imminent.

Sir Knuckles looked over his shoulder at the retreating Shadow as the latter tried to widen the gap between the two. Laughing in enjoyment, the echidna raced after the backing hedgehog. He soon caught up with the blacksmith, swiping his sword at him and purposely missing him, an action executed to attain the latter's attention. Shadow grimaced in frustration and sidestepped the Knight's follow-up strike, and then blocked the succeeding one. With the two steel blades locked together yet again and the temporary distance between the two combatants having been lost, Shadow snarled in irritation. He freed his long-sword from the pressure of the broadsword, managing to get his opponent to take a few steps back from the action. Seizing his chance, Shadow leaped a few more paces back, and felt his leg bump into something hard.

Crimson eyes flitted downwards briefly to take note of the wooden bench behind Shadow, before they shot back up at the sound of the oncoming echidna and his raised weapon. Shadow jumped and avoided the attack that came his way, landing on top of the bench. He swayed for a moment from poor balance, but quickly steadied himself. He swung his sword in an arc and just managed to counter Sir Knuckles' follow-up swing.

The crimson echidna nodded in acknowledgement. "Very smart! In battle, the one with the high ground is often at the advantage!" he informed, taking another couple of swings at Shadow, only to have them all parried once more.

"However -." Sir Knuckles' grin widened even further as he peered up at Shadow, his indigo eyes suddenly glinting slyly. "- sure footing is just as important!"

With a mighty kick, the echidna knocked the bench backwards and subsequently sent Shadow careening of his now-unsteady footing. The black hedgehog crashed onto the grass on his back with a grunt. His eyes then widened in surprise before he rolled to his right - just as the steel blade slammed down on the spot where he had been lying. Sir Knuckles smiled cockily at Shadow as the latter stumbled away from him, gripping his sword firmly in both hands and panting.

_This guy… Is he trying to kill me or what? _Shadow thought irately, eyeing the seemingly friendly echidna uncertainly. The majority of Sir Knuckles' attack had so far had enough strength in them to wound Shadow significantly should they strike. True, they may not penetrate deep enough through his armor to damage him that much, but the Knight was not aiming just for Shadow's armored chest. He was striking at any spot he wanted to, regardless of whether it was protected or not.

Perhaps Sir Knuckles was trying to teach Shadow a lesson: that he should never go into battle wearing just a cuirass and no other form of protection? No, that wasn't right. There was some other motive here. He wouldn't attack so relentlessly and seriously if that was his objective. Why, the knight had already aimed for Shadow's head and neck at least four times already, and all of them had been lethal strikes. Yes, Shadow had managed to dodge or deflect all those strikes and others so far, but the fact of the matter remained: Sir Knuckles was hardly treating this as a friendly spar.

Shadow glanced quickly out of the corner of his eye at King Sonic, who was lounging on his bench and watching the fight with an amused expression. Whether or not he had noticed that his Crimson Knight was fighting a little too seriously was unclear to Shadow. Whichever way he saw it, the King did not seem too worried that Shadow might be fatally wounded in this fight. This could be a sign that the King had complete faith in Shadow _not _receiving a lethal wound, or that Sir Knuckles would be able to hold himself back from harming Shadow so violently, even while delivering such crippling blows. It was either one of those options, or else King Sonic really did want to Shadow to get hurt badly.

_Doubt it_, Shadow thought with a mental shake of his head. _He wouldn't go through all this trouble to hurt me like this. There are much easier and more effective ways._

He did not dwell further on what these "much easier and more effective" ways were, for at that moment Sir Knuckles spoke.

"Tired, Mr. Shadow?" he asked with genuine concern, his violet eyes taking note of the beads of sweat forming on the panting Shadow's forehead. The Knight Commander spread his arms sympathetically. "If you want, we can declare this fight over. You don't have to force yourself to continue if you can't anymore." He grinned slyly at the blacksmith. "Besides, it's pretty obvious who the victor is, don't you think?"

Shadow smirked at the knight, wiping the sweat on his forehead with his sleeve. "I wouldn't get ahead of myself if I were you, Sire," he retorted with an air of smugness. "I've still got some fight left in me."

Sir Knuckles smiled in pleasure. "That's the spirit! Never give up!"

With a loud battle cry, he charged at the hedgehog once more, thrusting his sword one-handedly at Shadow's chest. The ebony hedgehog veered around the attack and began launching quick, successive swings at the echidna. Sir Knuckles casually parried the attacks, still grinning confidently. His taller frame allowed him to counter Shadow's assaults more easily, as well as add more strength to his own swings by making use of the added height to increase the momentum of the attacks. However, a greater height had its disadvantages as well, one of which Shadow was going to exploit.

After delivering an overhead attack on Sir Knuckles that left the echidna with his sword raised level with his head, Shadow quickly ducked and swiped his blade forwards in a horizontal arc, aiming directly for his opponent's leg. Being taller meant the knight couldn't block attacks that were closer to the ground, and with his sword high in the air, there was little chance of him being able to counter this attack. Though, seeing as how Shadow had not placed that much force in the swing (he at the very least was still treating this as a casual spar), Sir Knuckles was unlikely to receive any gruesome damage from this attack. Nonetheless, if the attack hit its mark, the knight _should _be forced to his knees, after which it would pretty much be "checkmate".

Shadow's sword sliced through the air at the armored echidna's legs, but to his dismay, the echidna suddenly leaped into the air to avoid the strike. The Crimson Knight used his jump to sail over Shadow's head and land in a crouched position behind the startled Shadow. Said hedgehog barely managed to bring his arm curling backwards to slide his sword in the path of Sir Knuckles' oncoming weapon. The two combatants pulled away from each and stepped back.

Reverting to his stance of relaxed readiness, Sir Knuckles nodded his head at Shadow in appreciation. "Well planned, Mr. Shadow, well planned. Trying to cripple an opponent's limbs useless is a smart tactic in battle. The limbs are essential to a warrior; without them, the opponent's victory is pretty much guaranteed."

Unlike his opponent, Shadow was still maintaining his battle stance. However, he allowed an amused smirk to appear on his face. "Since when did this stop being a spar and turn into a training session?" he joked.

Sir Knuckles chuckled lightly, looked at him pointedly. "The only difference between "sparring" and "training" is the name," he replied in a wise tone, wagging his finger at the hedgehog.

"I'll take your word for it," Shadow stated with a smirk, before tightening his hold on his sword and digging his feet firmly on the ground.

A sudden silence then appeared between the two, broken a second later when they both rushed at each other. The muscles in his arms tensing, Shadow swung his weapon just as the knight did his own. The blades met with a loud clang of metal on metal, before both were pulled back and then collided together once more. The two swordsmen circled each other, their swords seeming to dance in the air as they simultaneously blocked each other's attacks while launching their own in conjunction with their parries. They seemed to be taking part in some form of deadly dance, metal and leather boots sliding over the soft green grass as their owners battled each other.

_Now! _

Suddenly shoving Sir Knuckles' sword out of the way, Shadow rammed his foot into the unsuspecting echidna's stomach. His kick, while nowhere near strong enough to penetrate the black-and-red armor (let alone dent it), was nonetheless powerful enough to send the Crimson Knight stumbling backwards in surprise. No doubt having been caught off-guard by Shadow's sudden change of tactic, the Crimson Knight did not manage to catch sight of Shadow charging at him with his sword raised high above his head. It was only when the ebony hedgehog was upon him and was bringing his sword crashing down on the Knight when the echidna instinctively pulled his sword upwards perpendicularly to block the strike.

Shadow looked down at the crouched knight, smirking at something. The Knight Commander blinked in wonder, before following Shadow's gaze. An impressed smile befell his features as well.

Sir Knuckles was now gripping his sword with both hands.

A soft "Heh" of satisfaction escaped from Shadow's mouth as he backed away from the clearly stunned knight. Sir Knuckles rose to his feet, gaping faintly at Shadow. He suddenly laughed in admiration.

"That was an excellent kick," he complimented, actually clapping. "Brilliantly executed; well thought out. You caught me off-guard with that combo, I'll admit." He glanced down in amusement at the sword he was clutching in both hands. "You even managed to force me to use both hands; I didn't think I'd have to resort to that."

Shadow's mouth curled into a triumphant smirk. "I didn't either," he responded. "But I was determined to get you to use both hands. It felt like you were looking down on me by using only one hand, that you were refusing to fight seriously. Of course, I don't care for that. You're clearly the better swordsman. It would be ridiculous to expect you _not _to approach this spar casually." He suddenly grinned mockingly at the Crimson Knight. "But still, I wanted to force you to use hands, and let me just say this: that look on your face was rewarding enough."

Sir Knuckles cocked an eyebrow at the black hedgehog in amusement. "Well, whatever your goal was, the fact of the matter is, you probably succeeded. You got me to "act seriously"; and you achieved this by catching me unawares, Mr. Shadow." Sir Knuckles resumed holding his broadsword in one hand as he tapped his chin slowly with the finger of the other hand. He looked thoughtfully at Shadow as he continued to speak. "When someone is in a battle, there are many factors and strategies he must take into consideration. A skilled warrior can use these very factors and strategies to achieve a swift and quick victory."

He looked at Shadow pointedly, as if he was a tutor about to impart some grand philosophy to his student. "And I believe that, amongst the many tactics one can use in battle to win, one the most important ones is -."

However, he did not finish his sentence, for at that moment he abruptly charged at Shadow at a rapid pace, both gauntlet-covered hands closed firmly around the handle of his sword. The suddenness of this action surprised Shadow, and seeing the wide, horizontal swing that was coming at his side, he quickly titled his sword in the direction to meet the attack. He braced himself for yet another powerful impact from Sir Knuckles' strike.

As he came within striking distance Shadow, a triumphant grin inexplicably appeared on Sir Knuckles' face. To Shadow's surprise, the echidna pulled his sword back, instead rearranging the grip on his sword in mid-attack, and with practiced grace. Before Shadow knew it, the Crimson Knight was aiming, not for his side, but for his exposed chest; and he was not pointing his blade at the hedgehog, but the base of the sword's hilt.

Before the blacksmith could react, the Crimson Knight thrust the handle of his weapon into the former's gut. Just as the case had been with Shadow's kick, the attack met metal and not exposed flesh; and just like with Shadow's kick, the force behind the attack was enough to knock the victim back. However, unlike with Shadow's kick, the blacksmith did not stumble or stagger. Instead, he literally flew back through the air from the force of the thrust, sailing over the grass before landing hard on his back.

His sword slipped out of his hand from the impact of the fall, and a disoriented Shadow slowly began pulling himself back to his feet with a groan. His head throbbed with pain even as he tried to comprehend what had just happened. He had been struck with a simple thrusting action by the hilt of a sword, yet he had been launched through the air as if he were a cannonball fired out of a cannon. There was no way an attack that meager could pack such a powerful punch…

Then again, the majority of Sir Knuckles' attacks so far had been surprising powerful, despite the manner in which they were executed. Attacks which normally would have no force in them rattled Shadow's very sword when they met the echidna's swings. At first, Shadow had put it down to Sir Knuckles' larger height aiding him in this, but it seemed there was some other reason along with this.

But, Shadow did not have time to brood on this. This train of thought having occurred in practically no time at all, Shadow had just gotten onto a crouched position on one knee on the grass when he noticed Sir Knuckles rushing at him once more, practically right in front of him now. Shadow's eyes flitted down to the sword that lay a mere inches away from him, and he flung his hand outwards to grab it and pull it up.

But he was too slow. A metal sabaton landed on the blade of the fallen sword just as Shadow's fingers curled around the hilt. Sir Knuckles held the weapon in place with his foot, not allowing Shadow to pull it out from underneath him. The ebony hedgehog tugged once fruitlessly, and then looked up at the knight as the latter pointed the end of his sword inches in front of Shadow's protected heart. Sir Knuckles grinned down victoriously at the grimacing Shadow.

"Unpredictability," Sir Knuckles announced, this word completing his unfinished sentence from earlier. "One of the most important tactics that can be utilized in battle is "unpredictability". Every warrior goes into battle expecting something to happen. If you manage to surprise your opponent at the right moment with something unexpected, you can easily break through their defenses and claim victory. Unpredictability is vital in battle; a key strategy that can be exploited for a swift win. Don't you agree?"

Shadow looked at the genial-faced echidna with an expressionless visage, seeming to consider his words. The ebony hedgehog released his pointless hold on his trapped sword, and slowly raised his arms up beside his face in a sign of surrender. He looked steadily at the crimson echidna, and slowly answered:

"I agree."

Without warning, Shadow clamped his hands around the flat sides of the broadsword's blade, with the blade sandwiched in between his palms. Before Sir Knuckles could react to this sudden action, Shadow had forcibly shoved the sword away from his chest and to his left, pulling a stunned Sir Knuckles' sword-wielding arm along with it. Without warning, Shadow yanked the sword out of Sir Knuckles' grip, the latter's hold on his weapon having weakened due to surprise, and released it from his own grip at the last second. The sword flew through the air and embedded itself in a nearby tree trunk. Meanwhile, when the weapon had left his hand, the echidna had stumbled sideways due to the balance of his body shifting abruptly in the direction Shadow had pulled his arm; and as he stumbled, his foot lifted off Shadow's own sword.

Quick as a flash, using the speed he was known for by his colleagues, the hedgehog snatched the weapon up from the ground and leaped to his feet. The echidna had barely regained his balance when he suddenly felt the flat end of Shadow's sword press against his armored neck. Sir Knuckles froze and looked over his shoulder at Shadow, who had maneuvered around the unbalanced knight to stand at the echidna's left. A slow smile formed on the knight's lips as he surveyed Shadow. Shadow smirked back at him cockily.

"Unpredictability… You mean like this?" Shadow asked playfully, his eyes glinting tauntingly. Sir Knuckles' admiring smile slowly shifted into one of sly enjoyment.

"Yes, like this," he replied with a mysterious glint in his eye. Shadow barely had time to puzzle over his tone, when the echidna curled his left hand into a fist and slammed it onto the ground right in front of Shadow's feet. So strong was the punch, that the gauntlet carved a fist-sized crater into the dirt, and subsequently uplifted a cloud of dust and dirt into the air. What was more, a small tremor seemed to pass from the ground underneath the fist and towards Shadow's feet. All of these factors combined resulted in the blacksmith staggering backwards as dirt flew at his face and vibrations in the ground unsteadied him.

Shadow took one, two steps back without thinking, and he suddenly felt the ground under his backmost foot vanish. As he careened unsteadily backwards, the black hedgehog looked over his shoulder to find himself standing on the bank of the large pond in the garden. He had been so preoccupied with executing his last plan, that he hadn't been paying proper attention to _where _he had positioned himself. Apparently, Sir Knuckles had noticed that, which was why he had induced Shadow to step back onto the edge of this pond, with the result that Shadow was now moments away from falling into the water.

The ebony hedgehog felt his center of gravity shift backwards and cause him to tilt in the same direction, the unbalanced state necessitating him to flail his arms widely to regain stability. As his arms waved around frantically, his sword slipped out of his hand and fell into the watery depths of the pond. But he didn't care, for at that very moment, he finally lost to gravity and slipped off the edge of the bank and towards the waiting water.

However, before he hit the water's surface, a strong hand reached forward and grabbed onto his flailing arm. Shadow blinked in surprise as a smirking Sir Knuckles calmly pulled the hedgehog back onto to stable ground. Breathing rapidly from the rush of adrenaline, Shadow glanced at the pond's still surface, to the grinning Sir Knuckles, and then back at the pond.

"Um, yeah... I dropped your sword in the water," Shadow mumbled softly, straightening up from his bent position.

Sir Knuckles laughed. "Oh, don't worry; we'll get someone to fetch it later. Besides, we could always get you to make us a new one."

Shadow looked at the smirking echidna seriously, and then grinned in acknowledgement of the joke. Sir Knuckles laughed softly once more, eyeing Shadow happily.

"That was quite the interesting spar, Mr. Shadow," he stated, holding out his hand for Shadow to shake. "With the right training, you could easily become a member of The Knight Order."

Shadow smiled faintly and shook Sir Knuckles' outstretched hand. "Coming from you, I'll take that as the compliment of a lifetime," he replied in appreciation as he and the Commander released each other's hand.

The sound of soft clapping drew their attention at this point. Shadow and Sir Knuckles turned to face the approaching King Sonic, who was holding Sir Knuckles' discarded sword in one hand as he clapped with both. Jade green eyes were watching the two males admiringly.

"Well done, my friends! Well done!" he congratulated. "That was truly a spectacular fight! Both of you have performed admirably, I have to say. That was a far more entertaining spectacle than I would have predicted."

King Sonic held out the broadsword in his hand for Sir Knuckles to take. The Crimson Knight accepted it with a polite bow and slipped it skillfully back into its scabbard.

At that very moment, a loud gong sounded in the air, originating from inside the palace. Three pairs of eyes turned to the fact the building in response to this sound. The King smiled knowingly.

"Well, it appears it's time for lunch," he informed Shadow, looking at the blacksmith inquiringly. "Shall we go dine, Shadow? I'm sure you must be quite hungry after such an exciting match."

He was right, of course. Shadow just realized that his body was craving sustenance. He had used up quite a bit of stamina during the fight, having been forced to use lots of energy to keep up with his opponent's crushing blows. Coupled with the fact that he had had a light breakfast, it was no surprise that Shadow was starving.

"Yes, I am," Shadow answered, placing a hand on his stomach to signify his hunger. Sir Knuckles looked his way and held his hand out to him, nodding at the cuirass Shadow wore.

"Well then, Mr. Shadow, why don't you take off that cuirass and give it to me, and I'll take it back to the armory?" he suggested affably. "I doubt you would want to dine while wearing something like that."

Shadow smirked and nodded, allowing the knight to help him take the armor off. Once it was off, Shadow gently rubbed his shoulder, as if the armor had been straining to wear; which, now that he was no longer distracted by battle, he noticed had indeed been the case.

"Yes, it takes some getting used to," Sir Knuckles stated as he noticed Shadow's discomfort.

"Come on, Shadow, let's go," King Sonic suggested, gesturing to the courtyard they had originally come through. The three began making their way to the Palace's interior. As they walked over the stone floor of the courtyard, the cerulean hedgehog suddenly turned to the crimson echidna.

"Sir Knuckles, why don't you and your fellow Commanders join us for lunch?" he offered amiably. "That way, they can all meet our guest here."

Sir Knuckles bowed. "We would be honored, Your Majesty," he responded. "I will inform the other Knights of your invitation, and have them come over right away."

As he hurried off in the direction of the armory, King Sonic gestured to his right.

"This way, Shadow," he said, leading the way. Shadow followed silently.

* * *

**Author's Note: I have no words to convey how sorry I am for my absence. I had meant to resume updating _Kinship_ back in December, but circumstances left me incapable of focusing writing until recently. Mostly due to my academic workload. The situation has not improvedas much as I'd like, but I should be able to manage enough time to resume working on _Kinship_. That being said, there's a good chance that I'll release chapters on an infrequent basis, with the possibility of significant gaps in between (hopefully, none as long as this recent one). **

**In summation, what I am saying is that I'll try to update this story as frequently as I can, but I ask you to bear with the lengthy waits that are sure to come.**


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